I Only Have Eyes For You
by AstridWinchester
Summary: Story 1 in my series, crosses BtVS with Supernatural
1. Chapter 1

_**Chapter 1: Sunnydale**_

_**I do not own any of these marvelous characters, they belong to their creators: Joss Whedon (BtVS) and Kripke (Supernatural). With that said, enjoy! Again, reviews are appreciated!**_

It was a warm day as the first bell rang, students filed animatedly into the school. Dean Winchester watched the many girls pass by, a broad grin on his handsome face.

"Ah Sammy, I'm getting a sugar rush from all the eye candy!" he said delightedly, his eyes fixed on a cheerleader's behind. "Why didn't we come here sooner?"

Sam huffed and rolled his eyes at his brother, but privately agreed, as he too was watching some of the young women pass their bench.

They were supposed to be enrolling in Sunnydale High for a few weeks, maybe less he thought. He also knew their father was tense because of all the demonic activity in the small California town. Sam had done some research on the ride up from Wyoming, where they'd had a case with a typical vengeful spirit. He'd brought his findings to his father's attention, but surmised that the man was already aware of the town's notorious history. Now they just had to get into the school without causing too many eyebrows to rise.

The sound of the door opening and their father's rumbled voice made both boys snap to attention, Dean straightening from his relaxed pose against the wall next to the bench Sam sat on, Sam's bag on the floor by his feet.

"I assure you, Mr. Snyder," John Winchester said as he stepped out of the small office. "My boys will be on their best behavior." His gaze landed on said brothers, and both nodded politely. Sam gave the man his patented 'kicked-puppy-look' as Dean called it, which always worked like a charm. Dean tried not to look too smug, and attempted being respectful, something that Sam knew must have been difficult.

"I'll see you at home boys," John said, nodding one last time at the school principal.

"Yes, sir." Both answered, as expected. John gave Dean one last brief warning look then headed towards the exit, seemingly satisfied. He had to stop and wait as three students entered, turning to one side as they walked past, one of them giving him a quick smile. Dean's gaze fixed on the short blonde girl, barely noticing the redhead or the guy that were with her. Something about her drew his interest, and he didn't stop to contemplate why, merely studied her.

She was petite with shoulder-length honey colored hair, a simple barrette securing one section above her ear. He noticed she only wore what looked to be a silver cross for jewelry, and wondered vaguely for a moment if she was religious. His gaze traveled appreciatively over her tan shirt, paired with slacks. She carried only a few books in her arms, which were crossed in front of her, hugging them close to her chest. She seemed to be talking a mile a minute to her companions, so she hadn't yet realized she was being watched.

His focus on the hot blonde was interrupted by the annoying man their dad had referred to as 'Mr. Snyder' calling him and his brother into his office.

They complied, Dean reluctantly dragging his gaze from the girl who'd caught his attention, and took a seat in one of the small uncomfortable chairs. A beat of silence passed before the man leaned forward onto his desk, glaring at them.

"Now," he began. "Some principals like you to think of them as your friend, Me, I'm your judge, jury, and executioner. This is my school and I do not tolerate..." he trailed off then focused on Dean, "delinquents."

Dean tried to pull off an innocent look, but failed as he replied, "I have no idea what you mean sir. Why, Sammy and I aren't delinquents at all, are we Sam?"

"Uh no, sir." Sam answered, giving Mr. Snyder an earnest look.

He huffed and stood, then handed them both a piece of paper, still looking stern and scowling. "Better not be, but you just remember that I'm watching you boys for any discrepancies. Now get to class."

Dean and Sam stood, grabbing their bags and Dean's jacket, which he'd draped over the arm of his chair. He gave the guy a mock salute and moved towards the door, knowing his brother was behind him.

Once back in the hall Dean shook his head, and looked at Sam, seeing that he was studying the paper he'd been given. He didn't spare a glance at his own, instead snatched Sam's out of his hand, curious what classes his brain of a brother had. Sam protested, trying to get it back, but Dean held it above his head, grinning devilishly.

Finally he gave it back, then laughed at Sam's annoyed mutter, "You're such a jerk sometimes, Dean."

"Bitch," he retorted, steering his little brother towards his first class. "Now play nice with the other children Sammy or I'll download something on your laptop again." He teased gleefully, not missing the look on his brother's face, nor his grumbled, "It's Sam, not Sammy." But he went anyway, shutting the door behind him.

_Oh yeah, _Dean thought as he headed towards his own,_ Today was going to be interesting!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Meeting new friends**

**_A/N: I do not own sadly, all recognizable characters belong to their respective creators, Whedon and Kripke. I'm just using them for amusement :) _**

After his first class ended, Dean decided that he'd been wrong and had quickly lost interest in the school. He figured however, that he ought to do as the teacher suggested and pick up the books he would need, assuming he didn't decide to just skip class altogether. Besides, his dad had told him the night before to try and make contact with Pastor Jim's friend, Rupert Giles, who was supposed to be the librarian.

That decided; he looked around for the library. Dean figured he could take his time and that he would track down Sam when he was finished with the book thing, find out how the little squirt was doing. He pushed open the double doors and walked in, looking around when he heard a British voice.

"Buffy, what did you say you wanted to-" The man Dean assumed to be Mr. Giles addressed him before realizing that he wasn't who he'd thought. Dean smirked, _Buffy, really? What kind of name was that? _he thought.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was expecting someone else. How may I help you?" The guy asked, trying to inconspicuously hide a book he'd been studying under the counter.

"No big, and yeah. I'm new, was told you were the one who could hook me up." Dean replied easily, fishing in his pockets for the paper the principal had given him that had his schedule on it that he'd haphazardly stuffed away. After looking a moment and getting salt wedged under his short nails, he triumphantly handed it to the man. His father had drilled into him and Sam both to put salt in their pockets as a precaution, it being the Hellmouth after all.

Giles appraised the paper, taking off his glasses to clean them, before putting them back on and addressing the young man who was now looking around the library with a bored air. "Yes, of course, not a problem," He realized he hadn't caught his name then scanned the schedule for one. "Dean Winchester." He paused again, a thoughtful look crossing his face as the name struck a chord in his memory. "You're not one of John's boys are you?" He asked, peering at Dean curiously.

"Yes, my brother Sam and I. He's around somewhere; you'll probably run into him later though." He wandered away, closer to the book shelves, taking in the names of the tomes and the slightly dusty covers. His eyebrows rose as he noticed that most were ones his father or Sammy read when doing research. "I take it that you're Mr. Giles then? Pastor Jim's friend." He tossed back at the librarian, already knowing the answer.

"Indeed I am; it's a pleasure." Giles answered. Whatever else he'd been about to say disappeared as the library doors opened again and his young charge walked in. Giles smiled in greeting but he didn't miss the slight tensing in Dean, both from habit and years of experience.

"Hey Giles, I wanted to talk to you about tonight's pat-" She began and then spotted Dean.

Dean turned to see the blonde who'd caught his attention earlier that morning looking a little flustered. He instantly turned on the charm, and with a flirty smirk he told her, "Don't mind me princess, be out of here in a flash if Mr. Tweed over there would get my books already." His tone was light and teasing, the look in his eyes almost predatory as he looked her over.

"Yep, Giles is definitely book man," she quipped, fidgeting under his intense gaze. She'd felt someone watching her that morning when she was giving Xander and Willow a full accounting of the movie she'd watched the night before. He'd disappeared though, before she'd figured out that it was the ruggedly handsome guy in front of her, his hands stuffed in his pockets, still watching her with that smug smirk of his. _Geez, in a few years this one could give Angel a run for his money! _She thought as she looked him over in turn.

"I'm Dean," he told her, then waited for a reply.

"Buffy Summers," She supplied.

Not a moment later the doors opened yet again, to admit two guys, one a tall brunette with a Hawaiian shirt and jeans, his hair tousled. The other was shorter with spiky black hair dressed in a more conservative jeans and a band t-shirt. The first was talking to the second before he noticed Buffy, Giles, and Dean looking at them.

"Hey Buff-ster, G-man, and...Person I don't know." He said, faltering when he didn't recognize the other guy who was looking at his shirt in an amused way.

"Dean." He stated simply, "Winchester, I'm new." He'd seen the second guy working on a van in the parking lot that morning so he addressed him. "Saw you messing with a van this morning in the parking lot, what's wrong with it?" He asked, accepting his books from Giles, and clarified at the guy's look, "I'm in shop, good with cars. I could take a look if you need?"

"I think it's the suspension lines but I'm not sure." He answered, "Name's Oz."

"I have shop next, so I'll take a look, it'll give me something useful to do." He smirked, and headed towards the door. Buffy and the other guy he hadn't caught the name of had gone to sit at the table in front of the shelves, talking about something or other.

"Sure, I'd appreciate it." Oz replied then turned to leave again as the bell rang so he could take the van to the shop for Dean. "Later Giles, Buffy, Xander," he called back.

Dean turned back to Giles, lowering his voice slightly, "My dad's leaving on another hunt sometime tonight, but I'll be sticking around, new student and all. Next time we'll talk more?"

"Yes, quite." Giles nodded in assent. Dean looked back at Buffy and the one Oz had called 'Xander', primarily at Buffy and said, "See you around."

"Yeah, you too," she answered brightly.

He followed Oz out, intending to find Sam. As soon as he'd gone Buffy turned to her Watcher, "Giles, can I take tonight off from patrolling? I wanted to hit the Bronze with Willow and Xander."

She had to repeat her question though, since he didn't answer right away, his eyes still on the door Dean and Oz had just left through.

"Oh, well I suppose, if everything's quiet." He answered finally, his mind still on what exactly would bring John Winchester and his sons to Sunnydale.

"Great!" Buffy grinned happily, and laughed at Xander's comment, "Alright, let's party Buffy!"

They got to their feet and gathered their books, as the late bell rang obnoxiously loudly overhead. Xander fell into step with her as usual and they hurried to their classes, both waving a goodbye to Giles as they went.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Invitations**

**_A/N: These characters do not belong to me, I'm merely playing with them._**

Dean found Sam talking to a redhead, and recognized her as the same girl he'd seen with Buffy and Xander that morning, who'd smiled at his dad in passing. Stopping, he gestured to Oz that'd he catch up, wanting to have a word with his little brother. Oz nodded and continued as Dean approached the pair, ruffling Sam's hair affectionately before smiling at the girl.

"Geez Dean, would you stop doing that?" Sam protested, trying to straighten it again. "This is Willow, she's teaching the computer class I'm taking. Willow, meet my annoying brother Dean."

"Aren't you a bit young to be a teacher?" Dean asked Willow, surprise evident in his voice.

"Oh, well I'm just filling in until Mr. Snyder hires someone else," she answered. She tried not to fidget under the attention she was still not used to receiving.

"What happened to the last teacher?"

"She died, fell down the stairs actually here in the school, it was all very tragic." Willow lied, thinking that it wouldn't be a good idea to tell the truth. She wasn't about to tell two very cute strangers that her best friend's soulless ex had murdered the late Jenny Calendar for trying to restore his soul. She missed the brief look between the brothers as she'd been trying to straighten one of her papers that had gone askew.

"I see," Dean replied, and then turned to Sam. "How's everything else? You good?"

"Yes Dean, I'm okay." Sam sighed, but he was glad that he had his brother to check up on him. Not that he'd ever say so, Dean hated 'chick flick moments'.

"Good," his brother nodded. "I have auto shop next and get this, I told a guy I'd check out his van, his name is Oz, he's pretty cool. So I'll catch you at lunch?"

Sam nodded but Willow perked up and stopped fidgeting at the mention of Oz's name. "Oh, he's my boyfriend. He did say something about his van making some funny noises the other day." She smiled at Dean, most of her earlier shyness gone, and he smiled back. She liked Sam, and thought he was very bright and good with computers. She'd noticed the resemblance between the two before Sam had introduced him. _Maybe he and Buffy would get along..._ she mused to herself.

Her thoughts went unnoticed as Dean told Sam he'd see him later on, and then proceeded to ruffle his hair again before nodding at her and heading off.

"Jerk," Sam grumbled.

"Bitch," was the instant reply. Dean was already thinking of things to check on Oz's van, and just maybe getting some info on Willow's friend Buffy.

Oz was under the hood of his van that he used for the band, Dean next to him, both talking animatedly about music and cars.

"So, I met Willow, she's teaching a class my brother's in. She said she's your girlfriend?" Dean asked nonchalantly as he checked the fuel line.

"Yep, that's my Wills," Oz answered, while checking one of the distributor caps.

"She's friends with Buffy and Xander right?" He tried to keep his voice light, not wanting Oz to think he was interested in either girl. At Oz's second nod, he asked just as easily, "What's her story, Buffy's?"

Oz studied Dean a moment, wondering what he should say: the truth was obviously out, as he knew Buffy was secret-identity-gal. "You'd have to ask her, I'm usually too preoccupied by Willow, you know?" He said instead.

"Right, right, of course. You said you're in a band?" Dean changed tactics, seeing he wasn't going to get anything on Buffy. Maybe Willow or Xander would be more forthcoming.

"Yep, I'm the guitarist; we're called 'Dingoes ate my baby'." Dean laughed, and then realized that Oz was in fact being serious.

"Interesting name," he said instead.

Oz smiled and shrugged in reply before adding, "That it is, see we're going through this whole thing where we suck," Dean snorted in amusement, checking one last thing under the hood. "We're practicing at this place called the Bronze tonight if you're interested."

Dean thought to himself before answering, _Dad's leaving on that hunt in San Diego tonight, and he said something about leaving the Impala and borrowing a car or a truck from a fellow hunter. That will leave Sam and me on our own for a couple days. Sam won't want to go anywhere, but I can talk him around._

Besides, Buffy might be there, and he found he'd like to see her again, maybe flirt a little more. Closing the hood of the van, he reached for a cloth to wipe his hands on, before looking back at Oz. "Alright, I'm in."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: The Bronze and Sam's retribution**

_**A/N: Ok so for this chapter I used quotes from the episode, (found on ) and in the episode the dance was supposed to be the next night, but for my own reasons I decided to push it back so I could play with the timeline some more. Oh, and the characters belong to their creators, so, not me. 'kay? cool, on to the story!**_

Buffy was at the Bronze on the upper level, leaning against the railing, watching the band. She glanced around, seeing Cordelia and Xander dancing together, then Willow below her at a table, probably looking for her. She smiled as Willow turned and spotted her, and then noticed someone coming up to her.

"Hey," said the guy. She faced him, a little surprised. "I'm Ben. We had Algebra II together last year."

"Sorry, I pretty much repress anything math-related." She answered, still not quite recognizing him.

"Ms. Jackson? Second period? You sat in the seat three over and one behind." He pressed, trying to make her remember.

"Oh! Yeah, I remember now, it's the one with the desks and the chalkboards and pencils and stuff, right?" She asked then grinned at his laugh, then tapped her temple, "Like a steel trap."

"So, I was wondering, you know the dance next weekend? Are you going?" He said, fitting his hands into his pockets, waiting for her response.

"You mean the Sadie Hawkins thing? The deal where the girls ask the boys?" She clarified, wondering why he was asking her. He nodded and answered, "I thought maybe, you know, if you're free, you might ask me."

She got a deer-in-headlights look and stumbled over her words as she replied, "Oh, gosh..." she exhaled. "I..."

Ben held up his hand, "Oh, oh, hey, hey, no, don't, don't worry about it..." He backed up a step or two, embarrassed.

"No, no, you seem like a really great guy, it's.." She sighed, "Me. I-I'm not seeing anybody; ever again, actually."

"Oh. That's, that's too bad." He answered, a little disappointed. "Okay, well, I better..." Ben indicated and left, missing her muttered reply.

"Sorry." She watched him go for a moment, glanced sadly down at the band and then headed for the stairs.

Dean pulled the Impala into a parking space outside the Bronze, seeing the line wasn't too long outside the door of the club. John had left the car with Dean, and borrowed a red truck from a fellow hunter of his, in case they needed to get around. Dean had promised John that he'd keep Sam on the sidelines as much as possible (he **was** only 15) and there were too many things here on the Hellmouth that could get a hold of him.

His parting order to look after Sam hadn't needed to be issued, but John had said it anyway, already knowing that Dean would follow it. The brothers were very close, and Dean would do next to anything for Sam. John almost would've pitied anyone who tried to cross his eldest, because he knew Dean was fiercely protective of his kid brother.

Dean turned to Sam, an anxious grin on his face to find he was looking at the club with an apprehensive expression. Sam had needed several minutes of persuasion, and had only relented once Dean had come up with a compromise: Sam could bring a book, as long as he either played 1 game of pool, or danced with a girl who was not Willow.

"Dean, maybe we should go back to the hotel," Sam stated, looking back at his brother. He was having second thoughts, not relishing the prospect of getting his ass handed to him in a game of pool, which Dean was much better at, or in dancing with some random girl he didn't know.

"Nonsense Sammy!" Dean answered, getting out and pocketing the keys, and Sam followed with a sigh of defeat. They went inside, glancing around at the steady crowd of people and then Sam spotted Willow and tugged on Dean's elbow, already going over to sit in a chair next to her. Sam and Willow talked while Dean had other plans, scanning the place for a familiar head of blonde hair.

"Dean, who're you looking for?" Willow asked him, noticing his efforts and slight frown upon not spotting Buffy.

"Buffy, I met her and Xander this morning at the library, is she here?"

Willow tried to stifle her pleased expression at his response, thinking instead, _Dean could be just what Buffy needs after the Angel/Angelus fiasco._

"I'm sure she's around somewhere," she answered his question finally. Sam eyed Dean, his book next to him on the table, forgotten for the moment in lieu of his brother's odd lack of sharing that he'd met Buffy after they'd gotten out of school. Dean spotted the girl in question as she descended the staircase leading to the upper portion of the club and tried to appear as if he hadn't in fact been just trying to find her, smiling his usual smirk.

"Hello again, Princess," he said, relaxing in his seat as she approached and she smiled in kind.

"Dean, I didn't know you'd be here," she slid into a stool that she pulled up beside Willow, then reached over and snagged her best friend's cup to take a sip. Her gaze landed on the other guy on Willow's right, which while she didn't right away recognize him, she could tell him and Dean was related. "Hi!" She chirped brightly.

Willow and Sam both blushed, one from shyness, the other for forgetting that her friend didn't know Sam. "Buffy this is Sam, remember I mentioned that new guy that's in my computer class? He's Dean's brother."

"I'm sorry," Buffy joked, wiping the smug look off of Dean's face. Sam chuckled in reply, instantly liking the short blonde girl. Sam shook the hand she offered, then grinned to himself at the evil idea he'd just had at his brother's frown that he'd quickly masked in his direction.

_Interesting..._ Sam thought, deciding to get retribution on his brother, pulling his leg just a little.

"Buffy would you like to dance?" Sam asked her, almost laughing out loud at the venomous look in Dean's eyes. _Well he wanted me to dance with a girl who wasn't Willow, he didn't specify which one._ Sam smirked at his cleverness, smiling in return at Buffy's relaxed smile.

"Thanks Sam, I'd love to!" Buffy answered, not completely oblivious to the glare Dean aimed in her direction for accepting. She stood again and followed Sam onto the floor, her hand still in his. Although he was only 15, he was still somewhat taller than her small petite form.

"That little bitch," Dean growled under his breath at the retreating couple. He knew Sammy had only done that to annoy him, and damn if it hadn't worked. He quickly back-pedaled at Willow's indignant scowl in his direction as she misunderstood him, lest he be kicked by the redhead. "Not her, Sam. The only way I could get him to come out tonight was to agree to let him bring a book if he'd dance with someone that's not you, since he already knows you."

Her scowl disappeared at his explanation, a laugh and a glint of amusement replacing it as she inwardly applauded Sam's sneakiness. "Well that bit you on the butt now didn't it?"

"Don't know what you mean," he dodged. Getting up, he decided to go and grab a soda, anything to pry his gaze away from Buffy's seductive way of swaying her hips as she danced. "I'm thirsty," with that said; he retreated to the bar. He then went to the pool tables to hustle some money from some unsuspecting college kid.

Willow watched him go; chuckling to herself, then went back to watching her friends, hoping Dean wouldn't pummel Sam for his stunt later when they were alone. After that song they came back, and Sam went to get Buffy and himself a drink, excusing himself so that Buffy could occupy her stool next to Willow again.

"Well Wills, I think I'm gonna bail, see if Giles wants me to do a quick sweep before calling it a night." She said, "Tell Sam I'm sorry?"

"You've been doing that a lot. Patrolling and sacking. In fact, you've kind of been All-work-and-no-play Buffy." Willow answered, a little worried for her friend.

"I play. I have big fun. I came here tonight, didn't I?" Buffy said, trying not to seem too worn out.

"You came, you saw, you," Willow indicated the balcony where she'd seen Buffy talking to Ben. "Rejected."

"You mean that guy? Just not in date mode right now...and besides, I danced with Sam didn't I?"

"Well, maybe you need to date to get in date mode." Willow smiled.

"I don't think I'm ready for that, Will." She answered softly.

"You're thinking too much. Maybe you need to be impulsive."

Buffy shook her head at that, replying, "Impulsive? Do you remember my ex-boyfriend, the vampire? I slept with him, he lost his soul, now my boyfriend's gone forever, and the demon that wears his face is killing my friends. The next impulsive decision I make will involve my choice of dentures."

"Okay, the Angel thing went badly," Willow conceded, "I'm on board with that, but that's not your fault. And anyways, love isn't always like that. Love can be..." She glanced towards Oz, then at Dean before finishing, "nice!"

**The halls at Sunnydale High School: **

A boy was chasing a girl as she walked away from him determinedly. "Come back here! We're not finished!" The boy yelled angrily, grabbing her by the arm and turning her around to face him. "You don't care anymore, is that it?"

"No, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter what I feel." The girl answered, sobbing.

"Then tell me you don't love me," he shook her, "Say it!"

"Will that help? Is that what you need to hear? I don't. I don't! Now let me go." Not looking at him, she struggled, trying to break his grip.

"No! A person doesn't just wake up one day and stop loving somebody," the boy said. He took a step back, raised a revolver, pulled the hammer back and aimed it at her. She looked at the gun, then up at him, frightened. "Love is forever."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Revelations**

**Disclaimer: The characters and plot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Supernatural do not belong to me but to their creators, Whedon and Kripke. Some of the content was taken from , to ensure accuracy.**

Buffy walked down the hallway of the school, and upon hearing raised voices, walked faster and turned a corner to see a boy with a gun trained on a girl.

"I'm not afraid to use it. I swear! If I can't be with you..." The boy said to her, his hand shaking slightly.

"Hey!" Buffy called to the pair, trying to get his attention but not startle him into firing. She heard the girl cry out in fear and turn to start walking quickly away. Buffy broke into a flat run towards the boy, intent on reaching him before he could harm the unknown girl.

"DON'T WALK AWAY FROM ME, BITCH!" he yelled at the girl, seemingly oblivious to Buffy's presence. None of them are aware that down another hall, George the janitor heard the yelling, dropped his mop, and started toward the commotion. He looked at her just as she grabbed his arm, raised it and brought it down over her shoulder, making him drop the gun. She elbowed him hard in the gut, knocking the breath out of him. She turned around, grabbed his shirt and yanked him hard to the floor. He spun a turn and a half on his way down and landed hard on his back. The girl just looked at the two in shock.

Buffy bent down to pick the boy up by the collar while George ran up and went over to the girl. Both looked over at Buffy and the boy, and then the girl pushed George away. The boy looked from Buffy, the girl, to George in open-mouthed shock over what had just happened.

"What happened?" The boy asked Buffy once he had his voice back.

"What happened?" She repeated, staring at the boy incredulously, "You just went O.J. on your girlfriend!" She saw the girl look down and away from all three of them, not meeting any of their eyes.

"This is nuts! I... I don't know why I got so mad." He responded, still confused.

"Because you're a jerk?" Buffy scoffed.

"He's not. We weren't even fighting a few minutes ago." The girl said, still not looking at them.

"We weren't, I, I swear to God!"

"If you weren't fighting, then why'd you have a gun?" She insisted, not letting him go just yet. She didn't see George look around the hall as she was focused on the boy and his girlfriend, both of which still had confused looks on their faces.

"I don't, I don't know. I don't even know where I got it."

"I don't see any gun." George interjected, which made Buffy turn to him, and then around, looking for the gun. The boy and girl looked around also, neither seeing the weapon.

Buffy pushed open the doors of the library, not even noticing when they bounced off the wall with her forced entry. The boy and girl had walked away quickly, after none of the four had found the gun, and Buffy still didn't understand what had happened to it. The whole thing made no sense, but if anyone could figure it out, it was Giles, she knew; she just hoped he was still there.

Giles poked his head out of the door of his office at the noise, looking rather startled to see her so late, especially when she'd told him earlier that day that she was taking the night off to hang out with Xander and Willow at the Bronze. His hair was unkempt, as if he'd been running a hand through it, and his glasses were askew. "Buffy? What's wrong?"

"I just saw something really weird Giles," she answered, still trying to make sense of what she'd witnessed. Giles offered her one of the chairs in his office, but she declined, choosing to pace the small room as she explained why she'd come to see him and then recounting what she'd seen and about the fight between the girl and boy and the vanishing gun.

"Oh dear, that is rather odd," He commented when she'd finished, taking his glasses off to clean them. He had heard a commotion but had been so wrapped up in other things that he hadn't thought to go and see what it was.

As she paced, one of the papers on his desk caught her eye and she quickly snagged it, skimming it over and looking up at her Watcher, confused. "Giles, why are you looking into Dean and Sam? Are they connected to all of this somehow?" She hoped not, she liked the Winchester boys, and Sam had made her smile when they'd danced.

"Dean and Sam are John Winchester's sons, and they're hunters Buffy."

"Hunters? You mean like game hunters? Because that's just mean." She said, peering at the paper once more. At Giles' silence she looked back up at him again in disbelief, "You don't mean..."

"Yes, Buffy, they're demon hunters." He confirmed. "They deal with the smaller things, ghosts and the like."

"Nifty, but why are they here? Do they think we have some bad boo on our hands?" She replaced the paper on his desk and sat in the chair, thinking rapidly. "You knew who they were? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I suspected it when Dean told me his name and he confirmed it when I asked, and as to the ghost, yes it seems we may have just that. It's too soon to tell at the moment, but I plan to broach the subject to Dean on Monday. Buffy, I'd suggest being careful around them, you and Willow both." Giles cautioned, perching on the edge of his desk and facing her.

"Why?" She asked, confused. She figured that being hunters meant the boys and their father were allies, which she didn't mind having with Angelus, Spike, and Dru at large in town; Dean in particular.

"Buffy, hunters are very closed-minded when it comes to the things that are supernatural, they see things in black and white- good and evil- there is no gray area. Until I speak to Dean on Monday and know more about why they are here, I'd rather not announce your nature just yet," Giles answered.

"Because they might see me as a threat," she finished his thought, comprehension dawning as she realized that being the Slayer made **her** supernatural. At his nod of agreement, she got to her feet again, and then turned back to him, another thought crossing her mind. "What if I meet one of them on patrol?"

"It is a possibility," he answered thoughtfully. "It's also entirely possible that they won't know what the Slayer is. Even so, use caution around them. Willow as well, they don't take kindly to witches either."

Buffy nodded, making a mental note to herself to call Willow when she got home and pass on the information. Oz was a werewolf, so she'd have to tell him too, as the hunters might not understand the situation and decide to shoot first and ask questions never. "Ok, so what about the ghosts, if they are that," she amended, moving towards the door. Her mother would be expecting her home soon, and would ground her from going anywhere for the weekend if she didn't get back.

"I'll mention it to Dean on Monday when I see him," He said, standing as well and walking her to the door. "Perhaps I'll be able to find something in my books over the weekend; in the meantime, you should go home and if anything else happens, either call me or come over."

Buffy nodded again, said goodnight, and left, hearing no other noise in the  
empty hallways. She had a friend to call, and an exam to study for when she got home. Maybe Willow could find something out about the bizarre scenario she'd witnessed earlier.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: What's a slayer?**

**A/N: These characters don't belong to me, but to their creators, Whedon and Kripke. The short joke was from my friend Pariah.**

It was a Saturday night, the night after the Bronze, and Sam and Dean were in their hotel room. Sam was researching Sunnydale's history, making notes on the strange activity and the town officials' explanations. Dean, who hated research, was sprawled on one of the beds, restlessly flipping through television channels.

After finding nothing on, Dean sighed and tossed the remote on Sam's bed, causing him to glance over at his brother. Dean stood and changed into loose jeans and a Metallica tee, loading up on weapons. He reached for his jacket and boots after securing his gun in the waistband of his jeans at the small of his back.

"Dean, where are you going?" Sam asked, setting his laptop aside to watch his brother fully. He knew Dean hated research and got antsy when there was nothing else to do, but he didn't like what he'd found on the net about the town.

"What does it look like Sammy? I'm going out, see if I can find some demons to kill or ghosts to salt and burn. I'm bored out of my mind, man!" He answered, checking that he had his keys and extra rounds in case. "I shouldn't be more than a couple hours at most, just make sure put salt in front of the door and lock it behind me after I leave." He ordered his brother, but he didn't need to tell him, Sam knew enough to do it anyway.

"You sure it's a good idea to go out there Dean? You should see some of the reports I found, gangs on PCP, death by bar-b-queue fork." Sam said uncertainly, stuffing one hand in his jean pocket and running the other through his long hair. "Dad mentioned that there were more than demons here, like vampires."

"Sammy, there's no such thing as vampires, you know that," Dean scoffed, shaking his head, palming a stake as he spoke, just in case.

"Fine, just be careful alright?" Sam muttered, not arguing Dean's annoying usage of the name Sammy.

Dean opened the door and flashed him a confident grin, "Always am, little brother." He shut the door behind him and waited till he heard the lock sliding into place and the chain, then the sounds of shuffling which meant Sam was making a salt line.

He climbed into the Impala, deciding to start at the closest cemetery and work his way around town. _Who knows,_ he thought, starting the engine and pulling onto the road, _maybe I'll get lucky and find a demon who could give me one hell of a work out._

Half an hour later, Dean was cursing his luck as he slammed into a mausoleum wall and groaned at the impact. He'd quickly learned that Dad had been right and he'd in fact been wrong, vampires did exist, as one had just snuck up and thrown him several feet.

Dean rolled and pulled himself back up to his feet in time to duck as the snarling vampire lunged, aiming for his throat. He punched the vamp in the chest, knocking him back a step then followed up with a jab to its jaw, angering it further.

Fumbling in his pocket for the stake, Dean spotted it on the ground several feet away where it'd flown out as he'd hurled into the wall. He tried to grab for it only to be knocked to the ground again, the vampire on top of him and leaning down. _Damn! _He swore to himself as he tried to reach for the stake and keep the vampire from getting its mouth around his throat.

Suddenly the vampire was gone, and all that remained in its place was dust and- "Buffy?" Dean asked in disbelief as the blond hauled him to his feet.

"Hiya Dean!" She replied, her voice cheerful as if they'd just bumped into each other at the mall instead of a cemetery.

"What are you doing here? And where'd that thing go?" He demanded, thinking better of saying the word vampire.

"Oh I staked him."

"You what?"

"You heard me. I. Staked. Him." She spoke as if he was a slow child, rolling her eyes.

"I heard what you said," He snapped. "What I don't understand is how you knew to do that, or why you're here in the first place." He fell into step beside her, waiting for a reply.

"I'm saving your ass; you're welcome by the way." Buffy answered and then noticed the absence of someone. "Where's Sam? And what are **you** doing here?" She could sense that there were more vampires nearby, so she lowered her voice to reply.

"He's back at the hotel, I got bored, and I could have handled it." Dean replied indignantly, not willing to admit that he'd been at a disadvantage.

"Sure Dean-o," She laughed quietly. "I'm sure you had him right where you wanted him."

"I did. It was all part of my strategy," He insisted.

"What strategy was that, getting up close and personal with the wall and then sweeping his feet away with the power of your mind?"

"Ok fine, it wasn't going the way I'd planned, but at least he wasn't 3 feet above my head!" He tossed back at her.

"What, you're picking on my height now? See if I save your ass next time."

"Not my fault you're so short you could hang-glide on a Dorito," He retorted, then yelped as she slugged his arm hard.

"You do this often then?" Dean asked after a moment, fighting the urge to rub his arm where she'd hit him, a trace of his smirk gracing his face. He took in her appearance: from her loose jeans and top, to her hair held back in a ponytail, to the stake in her hand. She looked sexy as hell.

"Yep, that's me, girl who hangs out in cemeteries." She answered, her tone a little bitter. The vampires lunged at them, and they stopped talking, becoming immersed in the battle. There were only 2, so Dean pulled out his gun which had salt rounds in it, shooting one and making it howl and smoke, but that seemed to do nothing more than severely piss it off. He drew his stake that he'd grabbed from the ground after she'd helped him up, dodged a punch from the vampire and plunged it into its chest.

Dean looked around for Buffy but just stopped and watched, mesmerized by her sleek ability.

"I'm going to enjoy killing you, Slayer" Her opponent snarled, ducking one of her punches and getting a lucky kick to her abdomen.

"I'm going to enjoy a nice hot shower after I'm done, so sounds like we both have plans," She quipped, landing a solid punch and then staking the vampire before he could say anything else. "Too bad your plans just got canceled."

She looked around, then sensed they were alone, turned back to Dean and met his gaze. "That was awesome!" He grinned, and then his expression changed from excitement to one of confusion. "Only — What's a Slayer?"

From the shadows a figure watched the pair, unbeknownst to either. They would have seen him, he knew, but both were amped up from the brawl that they overlooked him, the blonde in particular. He didn't know who her companion was, but the way he'd watched her as she fought and the way she looked at him now he didn't like. No one else would have the Slayer; Angelus vowed to himself as he slipped away into the night, Buffy was his.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Confessions and first kisses**

**_A/N: I own nothing, all credit and ownership belongs to Eric Kripke and Joss Whedon_**

"No way."

"Yup, total way."

"Nuh uh, you're messing with me!"

"Scout's honor!" Buffy insisted, holding up one hand and crossing her thumb over her pinky in what she thought was the Girl Scout's sign.

"Like you were ever a Scout," Dean sniggered. "'Hello, my name is Buffy and I'm a Vampire Slayer, would you like to buy some cookies?' That's as ridiculous as the thought of you being a cheerleader!"

"Hey!" She protested, punching his arm again for the second time that night. "I **was** a cheerleader thank you very much!"

"Okay seriously? That's too easy, I'm almost insulted." He smirked, and then got back to the matter at hand, "There's no way you killed a demon by using a rocket launcher!"

"Did too!" She argued, before realizing how childish her argument sounded, and she continued, "It was this whole thing where 'No weapon forged by man' could destroy him."

"I still don't believe it." Dean answered; kicking a rock with his boot and watching it skitter across the ground. He was damned impressed by Buffy, and was quickly growing to like her more by the minute.

"You just don't like feeling all unmanly because I can use a gun better than you!" She teased, and laughed as he growled in reply. They'd been patrolling together for most of the night, once she'd given him the Slayer cliff-notes version, and she enjoyed his company.

"So an arm in a box was your birthday gift? How lame is that?" He cracked, just to see that indignant sparkle she got in her green eyes whenever he made fun of her.

"Lame wasn't the word, and it's not like it was my only gift." She defended, frowning slightly at him.

"Oh you got a leg too? How sweet!"

"Very funny, you think you're hilarious don't you?"

"I think I'm adorable," he smirked back at her, reaching his arms up to grab onto a low tree branch she'd just ducked under.

Buffy snorted and scanned the quiet cemetery, sighing when it became apparent that it was a bust. "I'm sure. Listen," she proposed as she turned to look at him, and raised an eyebrow, trying not to notice the muscles that bunched on his chest and arms under his simple tee-shirt. "This place is dead, are you in any rush to head back or do you want to hit a couple more?"

He thought it over, then shrugged in agreement, "I'm game, let me just check in with Sam." He dug out his cell from his pocket, hit speed dial #3 (Dad was #2), held it up to his ear and rolled his eyes in her direction when Sam didn't answer right away. Knowing him, he'd be buried in his laptop, and probably was wondering what the incessant noise was.

"Dean?" Sam's voice finally answered.

"Yeah bitch, it's me. What are you doing?" He asked, smirking again as Buffy scoffed at him for calling Sammy a bitch.

"Just browsing, everything okay? Are you headed back?"

"It's all good, I ran into Buffy and we're going to hit some places, I'll be a few more hours probably." He glanced at his watch, one Sam had given him for his birthday a couple years ago, and saw that it was nearly 10pm. "Get to bed Sammy, I'll see you in the morning."

"Alright, fine, say hi to Buffy for me." Sam said before hanging up.

"So, where to Blondie?" He prompted her and she made a face at the word, to which he just laughed at. She made the cutest faces when she was frustrated!

"There's at least two more we can hit, after that we can call it a night." She answered, as they both headed towards the exit and his Impala.

"Okie-dokie," He quipped and fell into step beside her as he'd been doing since they'd run into each other. He'd given her the brief version, saying that he, Sammy and Dad hunted demons and ghosts, making a mental note later to ask his father what the Slayer was in depth. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, considering. "Fifteen huh? Lucky you."

"Lucky? No, lucky would be never getting called at all. Lucky would be not needing to move because I burned down a school gym because of vampires. Lucky would be being able to be a normal girl and go on dates, who doesn't have to carry a stake with her at all times. Lucky would be not knowing about the things that go bump in the night." She ranted, but said the last bit in her head; _Lucky would be not having an evil vampire ex-boyfriend on the loose trying to kill me and my friends!_

"Bullshit."

"Excuse me?" She stopped in her tracks to stare at Dean in disbelief. Of all the things he could have said, that hadn't been one she'd expected. He stopped too, meeting her gaze squarely with that damned smirk of his in place, his arms crossed and an eyebrow raised.

"You heard me: Bull. Shit." He repeated slowly, his smirk hardening at her expression of annoyed disbelief. "Yeah, I get that it's hard being the Chosen One, and the moving, and even the knowing. It sucks, it really does; but you deal with it."

"Deal with it?" She repeated, still stunned. Where did he get off telling her to deal with it? She'd been doing this for 3 years! How dare him!

"You gonna repeat everything I say or can I finish?" He retorted, and she scowled in reply but stayed silent. "You want to know why?"

"Please, enlighten me," She bit out, her eyes spitting fury.

"Since you asked so nicely I will! You either deal with it and do your job or you die. You and I aren't that much different, Princess. You think I chose this?" He demanded, waving a hand to indicate the empty cemetery. "Hell no! I wanted nothing more than to be a normal kid who played outside and stole his little brother's toys. I've tried to give Sam as normal a childhood as I could, and do everything to keep him innocent!

"I meant that you're lucky you got to be a kid, that a demon didn't kill your mother when you were four. You didn't have to carry a six-month old from your burning house, the first and last home you ever had. You didn't have to train all your life to be what you are, going on one hunt after another, or watch your dad take off looking for that demon that tore your family apart and not know if he'll come back. You didn't have the responsibility of a younger brother on your shoulders, so yeah Buffy, you were lucky!"

He stopped, realizing the last had come out as a yell; those resentful words had seemed to pour out of his mouth, from where he didn't even know. The pitying way she watched him told him that he'd revealed way too much.

To avoid the 'chick flick moment' he knew wasn't far off, he stuffed his hands in his pockets, and looked down at his scuffed boots, breaking her gaze. "Forget it; I'm beat, think I'm going to call it a night," he muttered.

Before she could utter a word to stop him, he took off towards the exit, his steps brisk and angry. He didn't hear her sigh, or see the tear she wiped away that had trailed down her cheek at his confession, the tear that was for both of them at all they'd lost.

She caught up to him at the gate and was a little surprised when he didn't start the Impala and pull away, instead letting it idle until she reached him. She approached cautiously, and leaned down to look in at him from the passenger side's open window.

"Are you coming or not, Summers?" He grunted, still not looking at her. She climbed in and buckled her seatbelt, then proceeded to give him directions to her house and sat quietly.

"Dean, look I'm so-" she started, wanting to make things right and smooth over the tense atmosphere in the car.

"It's fine, Buffy," He interrupted, but he softened his tone before he continued, "I just wanted to say that while it's difficult doing what we do, you're handling it well, and that's good."

She relaxed, sensing that most of the anger she'd heard wasn't directed at her and was mostly gone from his voice. "Thank you, and so have you, you know."

He didn't answer her right away, and she saw the uncertainty in his eyes when she glanced over at him. "You have Dean, Sam's a great kid, and he's very fortunate to have you as his brother," she insisted, trying to reassure him.

He pulled up on the parking brake, and stopped the car in her driveway before turning to look back at her, "Thanks."

"You're welcome." She answered his simple statement, but saw the change in his eyes, one he didn't even bother to mask. She leaned forward to kiss him lightly on the lips before getting out, not giving him a chance to react to her sudden rush of affection. She didn't even feel guilty for it, despite what she'd told Willow the night before at the Bronze, in fact she liked that brief kiss, and wouldn't have minded stealing another. She almost skipped up the walk to her door, but didn't, aware that he was still frozen, watching her.

"Buffy!" He called out and she turned back, "Same time tomorrow?"


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Different kind of knight**

**A/N: The characters belong to Whedon and Kripke, the song 'Different kind of knight' to Christian Kane. One of my favorite chapters in this story ;)**

"C'mon Dean, let's dance!" Buffy pleaded, pulling him onto the floor. It was the night after The Kiss and they'd decided to forego patrolling and hang out at the Bronze. Both had energy to burn, Sam had agreed to come along, and Willow, Oz, and Xander would be joining them in a little while. Sam had brought his laptop this time instead of a book, and was busy looking up something or other. Buffy wanted to dance, but Dean had made no move towards asking her to, and she'd decided to take it into her hands.

"Buffy, I was about to hustle that college guy!" Dean protested, but let her pull him to an open spot between the gyrating couples. He caught Sam's muffled snicker as he admitted, "I don't really dance either."

Just then a slow song started, and the couples around them started to sway in each other's arms.

"Sure you do, it's easy," she argued, turning to face him and almost laughed at his expression of outright panic. "You just-," She put her hands on his hips and tried to move them from side to side in a mutilated sway, "Huh, you really don't do you?" She asked as he just stared at her, the panic replaced by embarrassment and frustration.

"Oh forget it, this is dumb!" He moved to walk away from her, intending to retreat to the safety of the pool tables; but stopped at her reply, "Please Dean?"

Grumbling about girls having unfair advantages and using the 'p' word, he let her pull him back. She slipped her arms around his neck and he fit his own awkwardly around her slender waist, still feeling like a complete dolt. _Having her in my arms isn't that bad, _he thought as she laid her head on his chest and they swayed to the song.

**_'Can I cut in on a dance?_**_  
_**_You ain't gonna find what you're lookin' for_**_  
_**_in that little Mexican._**_  
_**_You can't mix your tears_**_  
_**_with those from an agave plant._**_  
_**_You see I've danced with him myself_**_  
_**_and he's never been a friend._**__

**_You go believin' in your Lancelot_**_  
_**_well it's all in vain_**_  
_**_and you're chasin' picket fences,_**_  
_**_there's always hell to pay._**_  
_**_I met many a girl in here_**_  
_**_with the same story line._**_  
_**_All them boys on those white horses_**_  
_**_don't know how to ride._**__

**_But I got a paint outside with enough giddyup to be free_**_  
_**_I got a faint smell of cheap perfume_**_  
_**_and a hint of gasoline._**_  
_**_See I'm a different kind of knight_**_  
_**_you're gonna find your fairy tales are lies_**_  
_**_I don't have a white horse_**_  
_**_but you can come along for the ride.'_**

Dean glanced down at the blonde in his arms, and found that she was watching him, almost like she was searching for something. He started to smirk but something in her eyes stopped him, and he met her gaze instead, feeling like he was seeing into her very soul. She gazed back unwaveringly, just as focused on whatever she saw in his. Satisfied, she settled her head back on his chest and he tightened his arms around her subconsciously. He breathed in the smell of vanilla from her shampoo, and closed his eyes, hoping the song wouldn't end anytime soon.

**_'She said, "I'm tired of living life in a romance book_**_  
_**_I think chivalry's dead and I ain't gonna look_**_  
_**_for them roundtable boys on the white horse_**_  
_**_that can't get the story right."_**__

**_I said, "As luck would have it_**_  
_**_I was tossed by the throne_**_  
_**_I let my Marion down some years ago_**_  
_**_and I traded my coat of arms_**_  
_**_for a guitar and some broken yellow lines."_**__

**_But I got a paint outside with enough giddyup to be free_**_  
_**_I got a faint smell of cheap perfume_**_  
_**_and a hint of gasoline._**_  
_**_See I'm a different kind of knight_**_  
_**_you're gonna find your fairy tales are lies_**_  
_**_I don't have a white horse_**_  
_**_but you can come along for the ride.'_**

Buffy was listening intently to the lyrics of the song that was playing; the words just seemed to ease over them both. She'd felt his arms tighten ever so slightly around her, and the awkwardness and tension she felt in him melted away as the song went on. She liked being in Dean's arms, liked the feel of his chest, the sound of his heartbeat a sure reminder to her that he wasn't Angel. She hadn't expected that being with him would be so nice, but it was. In his eyes she'd seen all of the hardship of the things he'd gone through, of the things he'd told her in the cemetery. But also a quiet strength he possessed that spoke to something that responded in her. She wondered what he saw in hers.

_**'She kinda shifted in her seat a little bit**__  
__**the thought of every eye on her bee-stung lips**__  
__**and she raised that glass and the lime**__  
__**and she kissed them goodbye**___

_**She said "Promise me you'll take it slow**__  
__**and swear no talk of tomorrow**__  
__**and when you feel me tighten around you**__  
__**well you can let the hammer down."**___

_**But I got a paint outside with enough giddyup to be free**__  
__**I got a faint smell of cheap perfume**__  
__**and a hint of gasoline.**__  
__**See I'm a different kind of knight**__  
__**you're gonna find your fairy tales are lies**__  
__**I don't have a white horse**__  
__**but you can come along for the ride'**_

As the final strains that signaled the song's end played, the couples separated; some continued to dance to the next song, others wandered back to their tables and drinks. Dean let go of her waist reluctantly, and looked down at her, not questioning the tender way he secured a strand of her hair behind one ear ringed ear.

Silently, they made their way back to Sam, pulling up stools across from him and next to each other, their hands intertwined. Sam, who'd been watching the two, was pleased to see Dean showing affection, something he hadn't thought his brother was capable of showing to anyone outside of family.

"Hey guys," he greeted, choosing not to comment on their closeness or the fact that their hands were still clasped. Just then, Oz, Willow, and Xander walked up to join them; Willow introduced Oz and Xander to Sam, who hadn't met them yet. Dean let go of her hand and gave her cheek a brief kiss, before going off to play a game of pool with Oz. Xander decided to go watch, leaving Sam, Willow and Buffy behind at the table; Willow pulling up a stool between the two.

"Buffy, you and Dean looked so cute together!" Willow gushed and Buffy smiled then blushed a little as Sam caught her eye and he winked, smiling kindly at her.

"Yeah, it was really nice," she told her best friend, thinking about how wonderful it'd been to be in his arms.

"And even better, he's got a heartbeat!" Willow continued excitedly. The confused look Sam gave the both of them had her back-tracking, "Not that she's been with someone whose heart wasn't, you know, beating. I just mean he's a nice guy and you looked all happy and—someone stop me!"

"It's okay Wills," Buffy assured her, before turning to Sam, who was still lost. "My last ex was a vampire, but before you say anything, he was a good guy, he was one of us." She defended at Sam's incredulous look.

"A good vampire? That's crazy Buffy." He replied, trying to talk sense into her. He couldn't believe that the smart, capable girl who'd brought out his brother's softer side could be cowed over by such nonsense.

"He is- I mean he was," Buffy insisted, "he was cursed by some gypsies with a soul, he was different."

"Alright, but why do you say he **was?** He's not good anymore?"

Both girls exchanged a glance before Buffy answered, her expression guarded, "No he isn't."

"Why? What happened?" He pressed, curious about the look the two had shared; it was one like he and Dean often used to convey a lot of dark knowledge of something that couldn't be shared to outsiders.

"He lost his soul, so now he's my ex, and he's evil again." Buffy finally answered, not meeting his gaze as she took a sip of her coke.

"I see," he replied simply, his mind going over everything Dean had told him about what he'd learned the night before, and what little she'd said in confidence. He was willing to bet that Dean had no idea about her ex, a bet that he would've won as she spotted the guys headed back their way.

She turned back to Sam, panic in her eyes, "Sam please don't tell your brother, not yet." He heard the plea in her voice and felt it in the way she reached over to grasp his arm, peering intently into his eyes.

He didn't like keeping something like this from Dean, and on the one hand it wasn't really his business who her ex was, but on the other hand, said ex was evil and likely killing people. He looked back at her, uncertainly, but then relented and gave her an almost unnoticeable nod that she would've missed if she hadn't been waiting for it. He'd keep quiet for now, he told her without saying a word, but wouldn't stay that way if it put him or Dean in danger. Reading that in his eyes, she removed her hand, she'd tell Dean herself, when the time was right.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Secrets**

**Disclaimer: Characters do not belong to me, but to Joss Whedon and Eric Kripke. Some of the dialogue belongs to .com**

**Meanwhile in a mansion in the cemetery...**

Angelus walked into a room, leading Spike and Drusilla on a tour, "And this... this is the garden."

"Wow!" Said an awed Drusilla, "Look, Jasmine." She held a flower to her nose.

"Night blooming." Angelus replied, playing with some pruning shears.

"Like us. Oh, Angel, it's fairyland," Dru said, turning in excitement. "Ooh!"

"It's paradise. Big windows, lovely gardens. It'll be perfect when we want the sunlight to kill us," Spike grumbled, still at the entrance, unimpressed.

"If you don't like it, Spike, hit the stairs and go. Take a stand, man."

"Well, our old place was just fine till you went and had it burned down." Spike stated, his patience nearing an end.

Angelus walked around the stone table to stand behind Dru, leering at him. "Things change, Spikey. You gotta roll with the punches. Well, actually, you pretty much got that part down haven't you?"

"Very funny, mate."

Angelus poked his head out from behind Dru in a game of peek-a-boo, just to antagonize Spike, who he knew would rather he stay far away from. "What can I say?" He peeked from the other side of her head, still smirking at him. "I just love to see you smile, buddy." He held up a jasmine bloom and brushed it across Drusilla's cheek as he growled into her ear.

"Yeah, you're a giver." Spike growled disgustedly and turned his wheelchair to leave.

"There's a new player in town, my Angel," Dru purred to him, "He's all bright and shiny. He cares for her, he makes the clouds sing."

"Does he now, pet?" Angelus replied, thinking back on the young man he'd seen with the Slayer two days before. "Shall I fetch him for you?"

She squealed and clapped her hands with glee, and he swept off into the night to find the Slayer's newest love interest.

**The next morning...**

Dean was in a grumpy mood the following Monday morning as he pushed open the doors to the school. He'd enjoyed spending time with Buffy's ragtag group of friends at the Bronze, but when he'd been walking back to join the three left at the table when he, Xander, and Oz had gone to play a game of pool (which Oz lost), the way that Buffy and Sam were looking at each other made him uneasy. He especially didn't like the fact that she had her hand on his arm, and the way that they studied one another screamed to Dean of secrets.

That bothered him the most: the thought that his brother, who he trusted without a thought or hesitation, and the girl he'd grown to like were talking secrets behind his back. They weren't inclined to let him in on them either, as demonstrated by the forced-looking smile she'd aimed at him that was mirrored on Sam's face. Something had happened, or been said, that neither wanted him to know.

He'd tried prying it out of Sam first, thinking his brother would be the easier target of the three, since Willow had made an escape not long after, which meant that she knew what the secret was. But despite his best efforts, threats, black-mail, and outright demands to know the truth, Sam wouldn't cave, simply stated that it was not his business, and that he should ask Buffy.

He'd finally given up on his quest for information in favor of sleep, but had the strangest feeling that he and Sam were being watched. He'd looked around the hotel parking lot with his rock-salt gun, which wouldn't be much use on anything that wasn't a ghost, but found nothing and no one. He'd checked that the crosses and wards were still in place, and they were, so he dismissed the thought for the moment.

Dean was just about to duck out of one of the side doors instead of going to his History class, but heard the unmistakable sound of Mr. Snyder's voice behind him. "Damn!"He grumbled and turned to face the annoying principal, trying to look innocent.

"You'd better not be skipping class, Winchester!" The man glared disapprovingly at him, taking in his usual lack of books, which were sitting on the floor in their hotel room, and his insolent smirk.

"Of course not, sir." He supplied smoothly, but Mr. Snyder only watched him until he entered the classroom and shut the door. _Damn! _He thought again, but turned to find a seat, as he realized that he couldn't skip now. He brightened marginally when he spotted Buffy sitting at one of the desks, writing something in a notebook, her hair hanging in a golden curtain around her face. He took the seat next to her and peered over her shoulder, trying to see what she was writing.

Buffy noticed the action and glanced up at the person who had sat beside her and was now attempting to read over a worksheet that was due for her next class. She jumped when she recognized Dean, the startled movement causing both the book and her binder that had been placed on the corner of her desk to topple to the floor, spilling the contents around her desk.

Dean scooped to retrieve her fallen book, binder, and papers that she'd haphazardly stuffed between the pages from the floor to return to her. One caught his eye, and he glanced at it, then at her. What appeared to be a drawing was snatched out of his hand; the drawing was one of her, sleeping, it looked like.

He ignored the flash of jealousy at the intimate vibe the picture gave off, and the acknowledgment that she'd posed for someone while she slept: the thought never occurring that it hadn't been that way at all, that she hadn't even consented to the posing. He met her gaze, his own questioning, hers guarded, and he noticed that she had gone somewhat pale yet flushed at the same time when the drawing had slipped free.

He wasn't able to press the situation though, as the teacher chose that moment to begin his lecture. He turned to face the front, as did Buffy, firmly tucking the picture out of sight from his prying eyes. He continued to watch her though out of the corner of his eye, not really paying attention to whatever it was the teacher was droning on about.

He started to doze out a few minutes later, and saw Buffy start to do the same...

_Buffy couldn't help but close her eyes for a moment. The next thing she knew she heard a woman's voice, and she shook herself out of her reverie._

_"Don't forget, your assignments are due on Friday, class." The female teacher said, standing where her own History teacher had stood in front of the classroom. The students began to leave, and Buffy looked around, taken aback by the sudden changed appearance of the classroom and the different dress and hairstyles of the other students._

_"I told Ms. Hall we'd go help decorate the gym. Who are you taking?" One girl asked another, handing her a flyer for the Sadie Hawkins Dance. Buffy was startled to see that the year on it read 1955._

_"David said yes." The second girl told the first conspiratorially._

_"Oh, you're kidding! He's so dreamy!" The second exclaims. Buffy looked all around, confused, her gaze landing on the teacher who was collecting papers. She saw a boy go up to the desk and hand in his paper also._

_"Thank you, James. How are you enjoying that book I loaned you? The Hemingway." She asked him, and Buffy observed and listened to the conversation._

_"I like it. Very much. It's honest." James slowly reached for Ms. Newman's hand and gently took it, making the teacher exhale._

_"Yes, it's, um... it's based on a true story, actually. He fell in love with his. . ." They were interrupted by the door opening, and let go of their hands. Suddenly Buffy found herself back in her history class as her teacher continued his lecture while writing on the board._

"Hours, child labor..." The teacher was going on, oblivious to his class' inattention. Buffy stared in surprise at what the teacher was writing. ". . . and collective bargaining."

The class began to laugh, and both Dean and Buffy were jolted out of their thoughts, looking at the board to where the teacher had written and underlined 'DON'T WALK AWAY FROM ME, BITCH!'

"Oh, my God!" The teacher cried and grabbed an eraser to frantically wipe it away, as the bell rang overhead. Dean glanced over at Buffy, and was concerned to see the confused and disoriented expression upon her face. The two fell into step naturally as they shuffled out of class together and towards the lockers.

"Nice picture," He commented, referring to the drawing instead of the weird scene with the teacher.

"Oh, um, thanks." She answered, and his curiosity rose when he noticed that she wasn't meeting his eyes.

"Who drew it?" He asked idly, doing his best to pretend he didn't care.

"Someone I knew, it's no big deal."

He wondered why she was being so evasive over a drawing, and then realized that it might have something to do with whatever secret she and Sam were keeping to themselves. He stuffed one hand in his jacket pocket, running the other through his short hair. _Should I push the subject?_ He argued with himself as they reached her locker, and she twirled the combination, still strangely not looking at him. _Oh what the hell!_

"No big deal? Seems like a pretty personal picture to not be a big deal," He replied, after a moment or two. His shields were raised, and he didn't like the nagging feeling that she was giving him. He really didn't like secrets.

"Dean, it's just a picture." She tried not to look at him, tried not to notice the distant way he was watching her, tried not to show him how bothered she was by the topic.

"From who?" He prodded, as she really hadn't answered his unspoken question, instead blowing it off.

"My ex, okay? He drew it, and I haven't gotten around to throwing it out yet, I forgot I even had it." She was annoyed that he wouldn't let the subject drop, that she had to lie; in truth, there was no way she'd be able to forget Angelus' habit of leaving her 'presents'. She really liked Dean though, and didn't want him thinking that she still had fuzzy feelings for Angel.

"Is that right?" He growled, his eyes going from guarded to chilly, and with a hard edge that clearly said he didn't believe her lie of forgetting. "I'm late for class."

He stormed off down the hall, leaving her watching his retreating form. He didn't believe that there was nothing more to the picture than what she'd admitted; his gut was telling him so. It actually hurt to realize that after all they'd shared and how close they'd gotten, she didn't trust him with the truth.

Buffy groaned and contemplated hitting her forehead against her locker door, when Xander walked up to join her. "Hey Xand," she greeted her friend, and then proceeded to tell him about her strange daydream about James and the teacher. She knew he wanted to know why Dean had left the way he did, but she didn't want to talk about it with him. "I'm telling you, something weird is going on," she summed up, after filling him in on the scene she'd witnessed a couple nights ago.

"Something weird is going on. Isn't that our school motto?" Xander quipped, as they headed towards his own locker. He'd let the Dean thing go, making a note to intercept Winchester the next time he saw him and find out directly what was up.

"Pretty much. But I don't know. This time it bugs me." They reached his locker, and he started to work the combination.

"I don't wanna poo-poo your wiggins, but a domestic dispute, a little case of chalkboard Tourette's? All sounds like Hellmouth Lite to me."

Dean knocked on Buffy's front door later that evening, shuffling from one foot to the other nervously. He'd managed to avoid Buffy, Willow and Xander until lunch, when he'd decided to just skip the rest of his school day and go back to the hotel room to think.

He'd rationalized that he wasn't being that fair towards her, and that it was obviously something that she didn't want to discuss, if the haunted expression he'd caught in her eyes was anything to go by. He had come to the conclusion that he wasn't going to become involved in whatever was going on with Buffy, and instead focus on the job at hand. His father had called while he was in school, telling him that there was some paranormal activity associated with a ghost in the school.

He was supposed to be focusing on the job, not getting distracted by some blonde slip of a girl, he was Dean Winchester, for god's sake, and Dean Winchester did not get involved with **any** girl. Not even if that girl was a Slayer who brought out a side of him that he hadn't known existed.

So he'd walked to her house to find out what she knew about the haunting his father had told him about, opting not to drive the relatively short distance from her house to their hotel. He was going to keep it professional, do his job, then get Sammy and get the hell out of this small California town. He hadn't, however, anticipated Buffy not answering the door, but who he guessed was her mother.

"Um hello, I'm a friend of Buffy's from school. Is she here right now?" He inquired a little awkwardly of the woman, and she smiled at him in greeting.

"Actually, no, she's not home from school yet. She said something about hanging out with Willow and Xander. Do you know them?" She asked, tilting her head to the left and gazing at him curiously, waiting for his confirmation or denial.

"Yes ma'am."

"She should be home soon, if you'd like to come inside and wait." She gestured towards the living room, and he nodded in polite agreement. She stepped back to allow him inside, and he sat on the aforementioned couch.

"I think I'll do that, thank you. I won't be long, I have a class with her, and wanted to ask her help on the homework," He informed her, lying easily.

"I see; would you like something to drink..."

"Dean, ma'am, Dean Winchester. My father, brother, and I are new to town," He answered her unspoken question, then her more direct one. "And I'd love one, if it's not too much trouble."

"Oh not at all; I'm Joyce, Buffy's mother, as I'm sure you've guessed." She led the way to the kitchen to retrieve him a beverage, and he followed, taking a seat at the counter. He gave her his most charming smile in thanks, one she returned.

"Dean, where are you and your family from?" She asked, pouring the two sodas into glasses.

"Kansas, ma'am."

"Kansas is lovely, do you miss it?"

"Yes, I do actually."

"Are you staying in town long?"

"Probably not, but I don't really know for sure." He evaded, not too keen on continuing that topic, he asked; "Did she say how long she'd be? I really don't want to be out too late, homework to do, you know?"

"Not too long, I'm sure." Joyce answered, studying him with interest. "It's so nice to see Buffy making friends with a nice boy like you; I was worried for a while."

"Why's that?" Dean asked, feeling a small glimmer of hope that he would be able to solve the mystery of Buffy's ex. He struggled to keep his voice and expression neutral, so as not to appear too curious.

"Her last boyfriend, Angel, well he was a piece of work." She confided, "He was a nice enough young man, but then he started following her, leaving her pictures; he was clearly unstable."

"Really?" He said slowly, wondering how in the hell Buffy had gotten involved with a guy like that. It certainly explained the haunted expression when she'd glanced at the drawing he'd seen. "He doesn't come around anymore?"

"Oh no, they broke up and Willow read something strange out of a book, and it was odd, it was as if he wasn't able to come inside after that. And I haven't seen him since then."

She didn't see the shocked expression on his face, as she'd turned to place both of their empty glasses in the sink. Dean realized that Willow must have read aloud a no-entry spell, the same one Sam had used for their hotel room to keep vampires out. But that would mean-.

"Mrs. Summers, did Angel ever visit Buffy in the daytime? Drop her off from school; meet her somewhere, or anything?" He asked, desperately hoping his guess was wrong, that Buffy's ex wasn't in fact a demon.

"Now that you mention it, no, he always came at night. How odd, why?"

He ignored the question, and stood abruptly, "I need to make a phone call, excuse me would you?" He didn't wait for a reply, but hastened to the door and the porch beyond to phone Sam in private.

_She must have realized what he was and tried to break it off._ He thought, waiting for Sammy to answer. He'd chosen to stay at the hotel and do homework, instead of traipsing all over town with Dean for something to hunt. _He must be stalking her, trying to figure out her weaknesses, so he could turn or possibly kill her. Sam can find out something on this Angel guy and I'll take care of him after the ghosts._

"Hello? Dean? Where are you?" Sam asked once he answered the phone, concern evident in his voice that he didn't think to hide. It was later than Dean had said he'd be, and he was worried.

"Yeah it's me, look I need you to do something for me, Sam."

"Alright, what?"

"I need you to look up a name; he's a vampire that's here in Sunnydale, his name's Angel." He heard Sam typing the name into his laptop, and he continued, "I need to know everything you find out."

"Why Dean, who is he?" Sam asked, but did as he was told, his eyes widening at his brother's next statement.

"He's Buffy's ex."

Buffy walked tiredly up the steps to her porch, not even sensing that she was being watched from the shadows. She'd been at the library most of the day and some of the night after school had let out, researching the locker monster that had accosted Xander. Added to that was the puzzle of James and the teacher which she still didn't understand. She was hungry, tired, and just wanted to go to bed, so she overlooked the figure standing in silence until he moved into the light. Her smile of greeting froze when he looked at her, and his question turned her blood to ice.

"When exactly were you going to tell me that your ex-boyfriend was of the undead demon variety?"


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Mending fences and making enemies**

**A/N: Here's the next chapter kiddies! Lol, and dum da dum...Dean and Angel face-off! Enjoy!**  
**Disclaimer- None of them are mine, I just have fun playing with them. Thanks to Paige for Sam's screen name!**

_Oh crap! _Buffy thought as she met Dean's cold gaze; she hadn't planned on him figuring it out so quickly... "How-" she started, unable to think of anything else to say.

"How'd I find out? Your mom let it slip." He answered; his voice deceptively calm. "Why didn't **you** tell me Buffy?"

The hurt she heard was ten times worse than the anger, and she cringed upon hearing it; she hadn't meant to hurt him. . . She moved to sit on one of the steps and he sat next to her, but there was a definite distance between them, a wall she wasn't sure how to breach.

"Angel is a complicated subject, Dean," She told him softly, her gaze on her feet; anywhere but into those hard green eyes that had been filled with such warmth the night before. "He had a soul, he wasn't evil, and he was good and kind."

"Buffy he's a **vampire!** Vampires don't have souls, you know that!" He wanted to punch something; he wanted to get in the Impala and just drive. He wanted to plead for some sort of explanation, he wanted to turn back the clock to when he didn't know about this Angel guy; back to when she'd been in his arms and nothing else mattered. But he couldn't do anything more than sit beside her and try not to let her see how much this was killing him.

"Yes Dean, I'm aware of that!" For a moment she met his eyes, anger sparking in them; as well as something else he couldn't identify and didn't care to. "He was cursed by gypsies, they gave him a soul, and he was trying to find redemption. He's helped me and my friends."

"Oh really? Out of the evilness of his heart? That's right, this soul made him not-evil? What a crock!" He couldn't sit there beside her anymore, and he got to his feet to pace; then he picked up on something he hadn't caught before, "Why do you keep saying 'was'?"

"He lost his soul, and now he's evil again." She answered, watching him pace from beneath her lashes.

"How'd that happen? The curse had an expiration date?" He retorted scathingly.

"It doesn't matter how he lost it, the point is he did."

"So he's been stalking you since then? What else has he done? Has he killed people?" He demanded.

"Yes and yes, but I haven't seen him since you and Sam came to town." She studied the ground some more, then met his gaze. "Is it finished between us now?"

He didn't answer for a long moment, thinking it over. "I don't know, I need to think about all of this first. But until then? No." She breathed a sigh of relief: that meant that he was just trying to adjust to the information, not that it was over... at least she hoped so. "Why didn't you tell me Buffy?"

"I was afraid you'd look at me with disgust, that you wouldn't want to be around me anymore, I was afraid I'd lose you. Dean, I care about you and Sam a lot, can you blame me for wanting to keep Angel a secret?"

He didn't like it, none of it, but he couldn't blame her; not really. Angel was her ex, and it was clear to him that she wasn't ready to deal with him yet; else he wouldn't still be around. He just didn't like that she'd kept it from him, especially when said ex was an evil killing fiend. She could only delay the inevitable for so long before it caught up to her, something she'd learned when he'd found out the truth on his own.

"Buffy, I don't like secrets, and I don't like that you haven't taken care of him yet. Good guy or not, he's a vampire. Surely you guessed this would happen and that'd you'd have to kill him eventually? Or that something would happen and he'd become a liability. What if he tried to hurt Willow or Joyce? I don't understand how you could have turned your back."

He crouched in front of her, and then felt another cold chill down his spine that made him pull away again. She felt the change, and looked up at him. "Sam knows, doesn't he?"

"He just knows that my ex was a vampire, nothing else," she whispered. There was once again anger in his voice, and she couldn't blame him for it, she'd asked Sam to keep it from him.

"Damnit Buffy!" He cursed, pacing again. "Sam's my brother, how could you ask him to lie to me?" For that was how he saw it, because he knew that when it came to evil beings, his brother wouldn't keep anything from him if it put either of them in danger; not unless someone had asked him to. And that was lying by omission.

"I'm sorry Dean, I wanted to be the one to tell you, but I wasn't ready yet! I thought I had more time before you found out."

He didn't say anything more, so she whispered "I'm sorry" and turned to go inside, fighting the tears that threatened to fall.

"My father called me; he said there's a ghost haunting the school. Do you know anything about it?" His tone was still a little cold and detached, but she answered anyway. She told him about the scene at the school, about the dream she'd had in History class, about the gun, and Xander's locker attacking him. She also told him about what they'd learned after school, and how it all tied together.

"I'll get Sam to look into it." She nodded and reached for the door, then heard him softly say, "Give me some time to sort through everything, I'll help you with the ghost, then we'll talk okay?"

She turned to look back at him, and braved a small smile, then turned to go inside and up to her room.

"Buffy, do you still love him?" He asked; then hesitated because he wasn't sure he wanted to hear the answer. He didn't want to cut ties with her as he'd thought earlier, not with everything he'd just found out. Hell, he didn't know what he wanted. He didn't like the fact that she'd dated a supposedly-good-vampire and not only kept it from him, but asked his brother to do the same. Secrets could get you killed.

Buffy was a vampire Slayer, she was supposed to stake the undead bastards, not date them! The image of her kissing one just made him nauseous. He also didn't like the fact that Angel was stalking and killing people, even if he couldn't enter her home, they wouldn't always be protected. Angel was only going to become more of a threat until he was dealt with, and he'd **love** the opportunity to take him out.

"No." With that, she closed the door behind her and left him once again standing on her porch in the shadows.

Dean hit the cemeteries instead of going back to the hotel and Sam, needing to let off some of his aggression. He'd just staked a vampire when he heard the unmistakable sound of clapping, and a laugh that could only be described as condescending.

"My, my, so she's got herself a knight in shining armor, how charming." The man commented, watching Dean with a smirk.

Dean studied the vampire, he instantly knew that he was one, and drew his gun. Dean aimed it at the man, whose eyebrows merely rose.

"A Winchester too? Not terribly impressive. You know that won't kill me." His statement was matter-of-fact as he took a step towards the eldest Winchester, ignoring the gun.

"I could say the same." He retorted, smirking in return, pulling back the hammer on the gun. "You're right, it won't. Will hurt like hell though, wanna see?" He grinned in pure invitation at the vampire who chuckled.

"You haven't guessed who I am yet?" He taunted, knowing that Dean hadn't.

"Sorry, I don't make a habit of getting a corpse's name. I just kill 'em so they stay dead this time."

"We have a friend in common." He flashed a grin almost like he could see the gears turning in Dean's head as he figured out who he was facing off with. "How is my lover anyway? You wouldn't have had a little fight about big bad me wouldya?"

"Angel." Dean ground out, realizing that the bastard must have followed him to her house and heard every word.

"Hmm no, sorry. Angel's not in at the moment, I'll tell him you called though!" Angelus lunged at Dean, catching him by surprise and knocking him into a tree.

Dean grunted at the impact, and then felt all of his rage flare as he punched the vampire who had caused Buffy all the pain he'd glimpsed in her eyes. He ducked one of Angelus' blows and kicked him hard in the chest, knocking him back a step; just enough to pull the trigger.

Angel growled as he looked down at his smoking chest and the bullet hole he'd made. "Damn boy, that was my favorite shirt too."

"Like I care, try it again and you'll have more holes than that." He threatened, cocking the gun again as he spoke. "She told me your name is Angel."

"It's Angelus, that soul-having abomination was Angel. Pleasure to meet you." He gave Dean a mocking bow, the two never taking their eyes from the other. "We'll have to do this again soon, it's been fun, got an old girlfriend to see, people to kill; you know how it is."

He turned to leave, a big mistake in Dean's eyes, as he chose that moment to shoot him three more times, hit him in the back of the head with the butt of the gun, stopping only when he'd shoved a knife into his side as well. "Like hell you will."

None of these wounds were enough to hurt him that badly, certainly not kill him, but it'd allow Dean to get back to Sammy. The rounds were consecrated iron, which was what caused the smoking. He'd have staked him then and there, but his primary concern was that Sam was alone in their hotel, and no wards or sigils could replace Dean's added protection. They'd do this again soon, he agreed, jogging back to their hotel.

Once Dean had made it to the hotel and was positive that the wards were still in place and that Sam was ok, he told him about the interaction with Angelus. He sat on his bed, and let Sam tend to his wound (a cut he'd managed to get somehow). Sam filled Dean in on all he could find about a vampire named Angel, assuring him he'd look again when Dean informed him that Angel was also known as Angelus. Neither liked what he'd found, and Sam hadn't been the one to meet the vampire but he was glad of that, and they lapsed into an uneasy silence. He knew that Dean had gone to talk to Buffy about the haunting in the school, but knew better than to ask him about the conversation they'd had.

"Are you mad at me for not telling you about Angel?" Sam asked finally to break the silence.

"I was, but I'm not anymore." Dean wasn't any happier with Sam than he was with Buffy, but he never could stay mad at his little brother. He just needed to figure out where all this left him and her, if anywhere at all.

"And Buffy?" Sam ventured, hoping his brother wouldn't throw away the connection the two had developed over something like an ex-boyfriend and a couple of secrets.

"I don't know yet, Sam. We got a spook to take care of, the rest can wait. Now leave me alone bitch, I'm tired." Dean drifted off to sleep with that, not even hearing Sam's reply.

"Jerk." Sam watched him sleep for a few minutes, thinking of the change that knowing Buffy has brought out in him. Suddenly, he heard the ding of an instant message coming from his laptop next to him where he'd placed it to tend to Dean's wound. He picked it back up and settled it on the bedspread before him, then smiled at the sender.

**Slaygal98**- Is Dean back yet?

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Yes. What happened?

**Slaygal98**- My mom let it slip about Angel. Dean was…displeased.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- So I gathered. He ran into him after he left your house.

**Slaygal98**- He **what**?! Is he okay?

Sam glanced over at a snoring Dean, and smirked.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Yep, few bumps and bruises, but he's asleep now.

**Slaygal98**- Thank god. Was he mad at you too?

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- He said he was, but not anymore. He mentioned a spook?

**Slaygal98**- Yeah, majorly weird. Although, I guess you guys deal with them all the time huh?

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Usually, sometimes a few demons or a wendigo gets tossed into the mix.

**Slaygal98**- A wendi-what?

Sam laughed and took a sip of the soda on the nightstand beside him.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- I'll tell you about it later, what's the news on the ghost?

She proceeded to tell him about everything that had happened so far, and what they'd learned in the library, as much as they knew about the strange events.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Hmm, I'll take vengeful spirit for 300 Alex!

**Slaygal98**- LOL, yeah that was my thought. What's SOP for you guys now?

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Usually? We'd find out where they're buried, dig them up, then salt and burn the bones.

**Slaygal98**- Okay ew, gross much?

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Yeah I know, but what about you? What's the Slayer's next step?

**Slaygal98**- Well Giles and Willow have some spells they think may work, but we haven't finished researching yet.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Are they witches?

**Slaygal98**- Sort of... Willow's still on magic training wheels I guess you could say. If their approach doesn't work, we'll try yours.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Agreed. If she needs any help, tell her to let me know. Dean is more for the kill 'em all approach, but I like the magical stuff. He doesn't.

**Slaygal98**- Why not?

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- I think magic wigs him out a little. Not that he'd ever admit it.

**Slaygal98**- Oh no, god forbid

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- LOL

**Slaygal98**- I'll tell them you offered though. See you tomorrow in school?

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Yep! Be careful Buffy

**Slaygal98**- Always am, you too . . . both of you.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Of course . . . He'll get over it, Buffy, just give him some time.

**Slaygal98**- Yeah, that's what he said. I don't want to lose him Sam. He's the first guy I've actually cared about since Angel turned evil.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- I know, and he cares about you too. He just isn't good with the whole emotional thing, once he figures stuff out he'll talk to you. And you know he'll help you no matter what.

**Slaygal98**- I know, he told me he'd help with the ghost, I just want things to be okay between us again.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Yeah, me too. It's late and I should get to bed, talk to you tomorrow.

**Slaygal98**- Night Sam …and thanks.

**Parahunter_mathgeek**- Anytime Buffy. 'Night.

They both knew that the encounter between Dean and Angelus wouldn't be the last one, if Sam knew his brother; he'd antagonize the vampire on purpose next time. He'd just have to make sure Dean didn't get himself killed in the process


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Not just a librarian**

**A/N: well here's one with a bit of humor, the car scene was inspired by a friend of mine and her brother which gave me a laugh and I felt like adding it. The characters are not mine, but I can always wish haha ;) Points to anyone who picks up on the 'paperweight' mention!**

The next morning Dean closed their hotel room door behind him and heard music blaring loudly across the small parking lot. _Oh hell no!_ He thought when he saw Sam in the driver's seat bobbing along to some song he didn't recognize because it wasn't **his** music for sure. He jerked his thumb at his brother, plainly telling him to move his ass out of the driver's seat, but the little bitch ignored him; turning up the volume and continuing to dance to the song.

Dean reached the car in record time and pulled open the door and tried to get a grip on his brother's leg to physically pull him out of **his** car, but Sam – having anticipated this - wrapped an arm around the passenger's side head rest and kept dancing. Now Dean was mad. He pulled as hard as he could on Sam's leg, causing his brother to lose his grip and topple to the pavement; grinning anyway.

Dean grinned back in triumph and climbed in, promptly ejecting whatever trash Sammy had put into his stereo and tossing it into the nearest trash can. Sam protested, but knew he'd asked for it, so he climbed in on the other side.

Sam had to listen to Dean mutter soothing words to the Impala, and a promise not to subject his precious baby to that sort of music again; all while being glared at by his brother. He laughed when Dean flipped him off in reply to his mocking comment that he should forget Buffy and marry the car since he loved it so much. Everything was back to normal between the Winchester's, the previous day and night's events put behind them.

The two arrived at Sunnydale High School without any other incidents, trading insults like two brother's will; they walked in unison towards their classes. Sam spotted Buffy and her friends and went to go visit with them, leaving Dean alone who was quickly swooped down on by none other than Cordelia Chase.

Usually Dean liked girls that went out of their way to catch his attention, but Cordelia was another matter; frankly she made his head hurt. Besides, he'd seen her and Xander together a couple times, so he didn't want to piss the guy off when he had no interest in the brunette whatsoever.

He almost cried with relief when he spied Giles walking nearby, giving him the perfect excuse to make his getaway. He didn't bother with an apology or farewell as he walked away from her, not even hearing whatever it was she was saying; if indeed she was able to talk through that huge smile of hers. Her smile had nothing on Buffy's. He smirked when he heard her sniff at him in annoyance and mentally cheered at the fact that hopefully this meant she'd leave him alone now.

"Giles, Watcher man, we need to talk," He greeted the librarian, who looked up from the paper he'd been skimming.

"Oh yes, quite. I meant to get a hold of you yesterday, but wasn't able to."

"Yeah, I kinda ducked out. Buffy tells me there's a spook hanging around?" He prompted, lowering his voice slightly so as not to startle any civilians who happened to be nearby. They entered the library together; Giles went behind the counter to set down the papers he'd been carrying.

"It seems so, Buffy's experience the night after she left the Bronze and the one in her History class sounded rather strange."

"So I hear," Dean leapt lightly onto the checkout counter to watch Giles return some books that were in the return-bin to their rightful shelves.

"Dean, perhaps you can tell me what it was that brought your family to Sunnydale?" Giles asked him. He'd been trying to reach John Winchester over the weekend, with no such luck.

"Oh you know, old contacts, ghosts here and there, a Hellmouth, same old." Dean smirked at him, but his tone was serious as he met the Watcher's gaze.

"He was already aware of the ghost?" Giles asked, confused. The ghost had made its appearance the same night that the Winchester's had come to town, and it confused him to find that they'd already known it was there, when neither he nor his Slayer had.

"To be honest, I'm not really sure; he said something about mystical energies that a friend of his had detected, but that there were things blocking the signal. I'm assuming the Hellmouth was the blocker." Dean informed him, watching as he took his glasses off to clean them. He saw a paperweight on the desk and picked it up to turn it over in his hands. It looked to be some sort of orb, one that was rather glassy.

"Yes, that would make sense. And you and Sam will be staying until the ghost is gone?" Giles asked, looking back at Dean, who was studying his paperweight rather intensely.

"Yep, that's the plan G-man!" He joked, adopting Xander's nickname for the Watcher as he replaced the orb in its original spot.

"Please don't call me that," Giles groaned and Dean grinned with amusement. "Xander insists upon it no matter how many times I ask him not to."

"Yeah sure, was just joking around." Dean was silent a moment as his eyes followed the librarian around, then spoke up hesitantly. "Giles, can I ask you something?"

"Certainly Dean, what is it?"

"It's about Angelus, or Angel, whatever his name is," Dean clarified. "What's his deal?"

"What has Buffy told you?" Giles redirected, meeting the eldest Winchester's gaze.

"Not that much, not willingly anyway. Joyce let it slip that they dated but that he's gone all stalker-guy on her since. And when I confronted Buffy about it, she said he had a soul before, doesn't now, and that he's back to being an evil dude."

"Well that's about it really, what more did you want to know?" The Watcher was beginning to see where this conversation had stemmed from, and that the Hunter was growing to care about his Slayer. But he guessed that she'd left out how exactly Angel had lost his soul, and about Jenny; something he was grateful for.

"I don't know, the whole thing just rubs me the wrong way. Aside from the fact that he's an evil vampire that's killing people and stalking Buffy and her friends of course."

"Of course, and that's understandable. I must admit, I'm not a fan of him either."

"I see," Dean stated, seeing something in the older man's eyes that he recognized immediately. He knew better than to press it though, he'd seen that same dark light that could only be grief in his father's eyes whenever Old Yellow Eyes was brought up. He was willing to bet half his knife collection that Angelus had killed someone that Giles had known and loved. That kind of pain was too fresh, too raw to be picked at by anyone else. He was tactful enough to know when to drop a subject, and it was clear that now wasn't the time to pry.

"Have you reached my dad yet? He mentioned that you've been playing phone tag." Dean asked to change the subject as he got off the counter; the first bell was due to ring in a few minutes. He pretended not to notice the expressions of relief and gratitude in the Watcher's eyes when he didn't ask for any more information on Angelus.

"No, not yet. I was intending to try him again today in fact."

"Gotcha, well I better bounce, class and all. Snyder's been dogging me since I started. Think he was a rat in another life." Dean half-joked and saw the smile on Giles' face, which convinced him that the man would be alright; at least in time. He nodded in farewell, and with an air of someone about to be tortured, headed towards his first class.

Giles watched him go, and almost jumped as his phone chose that moment to ring. He went into his office to answer it, and was a little surprised when he heard John's voice on the other end. "Mr. Giles, I'm Dean and Sam Winchester's father. Pastor Jim recommended you, I'm afraid we keep missing each other." John told him, thinking of the wendigo he was hunting a state away.

"Yes, he's mentioned you. Call me Rupert, please. I just spoke with Dean a minute ago about trying to reach you today."

"How are my sons, behaving I trust?" John's voice held an amusement in it that Giles couldn't help but laugh at.

"Yes, they're settling in. I meant to ask you why you came to Sunnydale in the first place." Giles asked, sitting in his desk chair and leaning back.

"A friend mentioned signs of a ghost. You've been checking up on me and my boys I hear?"

"Oh yes, well I was-," Started Giles, flushing when he realized he'd been doing just that.

"Relax, Rupert. I would have done the same in your position. What I wanted to discuss with you is in regards to your Slayer."

Giles' first reaction was to deny, but he didn't get that far before John spoke again, "I've heard the rumors Rupert, and I assure you, she's not my concern."

"Indeed. What is your concern then?" Giles asked, re-adjusting his glasses further up on the bridge of his nose.

"As I said, there have been mutterings about at least one ghost in the school, and while I was hesitant at crossing the Slayer's turf, ghosts are what my boys and I handle best." John went on. "They are in the position to assist her and yourself, Dean especially; as he has more experience than Sam. I've given Dean explicit instructions to keep Sam as far from the action as possible, since he's the youngest." John said, thinking of his son's habit of getting into trouble and kidnapped without Dean's or his supervision.

"That's understandable and I appreciate your help with this matter. Frankly ghosts aren't our usual culprits." Giles agreed, and then offered his thanks.

"Well it's one of ours, so the boys know how to handle this one. But if you or the Slayer needs any assistance in the future, I hope you call on us; we'd be happy to help." John answered, pride in his voice as he spoke of his sons' skill at hunting.

"I appreciate it, and I'll pass it on to her. We could always use more allies," Giles said, his mind on Angelus, Spike and Drusilla. They both hung up and Giles sat in his chair, lost in thought, the next week was proving to be very confusing and promising at the same time now that they had the Winchester's help with their resident ghost, and that his Slayer wasn't at risk from them or their father. Maybe things would work out alright, after all.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: Normal again…sort of**

**A/N: I skipped over the fact that when Buffy gave him the Slayer cliff-notes, she also filled him in on the whole Giles is her Watcher thing. So now that we're all on the same page, the characters are not mine, and some of the dialogue was borrowed from .com. Thanks!**

Buffy glanced over to where Dean occupied the desk beside hers in their History class and studied his profile. He'd avoided her that morning, but she remembered Giles saying he wanted to talk to him Friday night, so she'd relaxed when she saw the two going towards the library.

She'd wanted to go up to Cordelia and rip her hair out or otherwise threaten bodily harm to the girl; for zeroing in on Dean, when she was **supposed** to be dating Xander. She'd almost laughed aloud in triumph when she'd watched Dean walk off towards Giles, snubbing Sunnydale's resident Queen Bee, Xander Harris or no.

He'd taken the seat beside her again and offered her a few smiles, but the two didn't get a chance to talk because the teacher had put on a boring movie they were supposed to be watching. She wanted to know where they stood, as well as discreetly check for any injuries from his encounter with Angelus the night before, but he seemed fine. He must have felt her studying him, because he gave her one of his smirks and scrawled something on the notebook he had in front of him; edging it over so she could read it.

**'See something you like Princess?'** He'd written, and she smiled. She glanced at the teacher who was grading papers, not even caring that half his class was sleeping.

She pushed her desk closer to his as quietly as she could and snatched the notebook to reply. **'Maybe, do you?'**

**'Hmm... I'll let ya know!'** He chuckled at her glare, and then wrote beside it, **'Everything okay? No more ghost dreams?'**

**'No,'** she wrote back. **'I saw you piss Cordy off this morning; I think you hurt her feelings.'** Not that she cared of course.

**'She'll get over it, if I'm lucky she'll remember it and leave me alone till Sam and I leave here.'**

**'Leave?'** She repeated, feeling her heart start to sink at the thought.

**'Well, yeah. We're Hunters sweetheart; we can't just stay here in Sunnyhell.'**

**'Right, of course.'** She wrote back, wishing he hadn't brought it up. She didn't want to think of him and Sam leaving.

**'We'll come back though, I mean if you can't handle the Hellmouth alone.'** She glanced at him and saw the teasing glint in his eye. He was trying to reassure her that they'd return without making a big deal out of it in typical Dean fashion. This was definitely of the good, because it meant that even after everything, he wasn't just going to drive off and say to hell with her.

**'I'm sure I can handle it, but a little help is always nice.'** She wrote back, and smiled at the pleased expression he gave her.

**'Sam told you I ran into Dead Boy?'** She snorted at his unknown use of the same name Xander had given her ex.

**'Xand calls him that too, and yeah he mentioned it. You're okay right?**'

**'What, you think some undead pain in the ass vampire could take me down? Have we **_**just**_** met?'** He joked, downplaying the topic so as to put her at ease.

**'Oh right, of course not, you're the almighty Dean Winchester; How could I have forgotten?'** She scoffed, but it made her feel better that he was alright and that their easy banter meant things were some-what normal between them.

**'Damn right! Made me worry there for a second that someone possessed you or something. I swear if I had to take out a shifter-Buffy, well that would just totally suck.'**

**'Shifter? What's that?'** She asked, glancing at him.

**'Really ugly assed demons, I'll tell you about them after class.'** He answered.

**'And why would it suck exactly?'** She wrote, raising an eyebrow at him teasingly.

**'Cause then I'd have to listen to Sammy's jibes about liking another demon.'** She enjoyed that, partly because he'd just admitted he liked her, and partly because it gave her something to tease him about with Sam.

They both looked up guiltily when the teacher began to lecture again, waking most of the sleeping members of the class.

The bell rang shortly after and they walked towards the cafeteria together. Dean wanted to reach for her hand, but he still hadn't thought everything over enough for something like that so he settled for putting one hand on the small of her back.

It was a possessive gesture that warned any overly hormonal teenager that she was off-limits. If she minded, she made no sign of it, merely allowed him to do so. He had to smile at that, he knew she could break his wrist in faster than it took to blink if she had half a mind to.

He sat in a chair next to her at an empty table, turning the chair around to rest his arms on the top, and proceeded to tell her all about shifters until the rest of the group joined them.

"They shed their skin?! That's just gross!" She exclaimed in horror, making a face and pushing her tray away. He laughed and snagged her apple, taking a bite as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"What's gross?" Willow asked as she, Oz, Xander, Cordelia, and Sam joined them at their table.

Dean opened his mouth to tell them about a shifter but Buffy quickly placed her hand over his mouth, giving him a glare when she saw the mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Don't you dare Dean Winchester!" She threatened him, fighting to hold onto her glare and not smile at the dismay on his face.

He grinned beneath her hand, making it tickle then kissed her palm, which caused pleasant butterflies to take flight in her belly at the intimate action. She removed her hand with another warning glare, trying not to blush. She turned back to her friends and assured them that they really didn't want to know.

Kraut dogs and spaghetti were on the menu today, but Cordelia had opted on spaghetti, since it didn't look half as bad as the rest.

"I hope you guys aren't going to the Sadie Hawkins Dance," She said, ignoring Dean and instead digging into her lunch. "'Cause I'm organizing a boycott. Do you realize that the girls have to ask the guys? And pay and everything? I mean, whose genius idea was that?"

Everyone shared amused looks then Xander replied to his girlfriend's comment, "Obviously, some hairy-legged feminist."

"Really! Well, we need to nip this thing in the butt. I mean, otherwise, things are going to get really scary." She insisted, missing his sarcasm entirely.

Suddenly they heard several students scream: the hotdogs and spaghetti had all turned into snakes. A boy pulled his snake-dog away from his mouth; they saw that he had a snake protruding from his lips. He dropped the bun, spit out the snake and quickly got up, backing away from his table.

Xander and the others looked back to their table to see snakes all over it as well.

"What the hell?!" Dean yelled, instantly jumping to his feet to pull Buffy and Sam towards him. He saw Oz do the same to Willow and they hastily made their way to the doors, except for Cordelia, who was too busy screaming to think. When she finally looked at the table again a snake lunged at her and bit her on the cheek. She reacted fast, throwing the snake off of her and ran for the door, Xander following her outside.

Dean saw Cordelia and Xander run past, and Snyder coming towards them so they ducked into a connecting hallway. He didn't want to be blamed for this fiasco, not when Snyder already thought of him as a delinquent. He checked Buffy and Sam both over, making sure they were alright, and hadn't been hurt.

Snyder came through the door and saw the mayhem. He stepped back just as a student came running by and fell over a table; leaving the cafeteria deserted.

Back in the hallway, Dean turned to Buffy, "What the hell was that all about?" He demanded, she shook her head in reply.

"No idea, but we better get this exorcism on the road, I don't think I can handle this crap much longer."

Dean and Sam both nodded and all three briskly headed towards the library to find Giles.

**A few minutes later outside:**

The police were outside the school, and a team of pest controllers were gathering the snakes, which had managed to make their way all around the school. Students were still fleeing the building and running around. Cordelia and Xander sat on the back of an ambulance while a paramedic dressed her snakebite.

"Perfect. I'm gonna be scarred and swollen. Why didn't they just kill me?" She moaned, and Xander and the paramedic rolled their eyes at each other.

Snyder held the car door open as the Chief got out and addressed him, "School boy pranks?"

"Never sell." He slammed the door and they walk away from the students and school.

"The sewer got backed up." The Chief supplied.

"Better. I can probably make that one fly. But this is getting out of hand. People will talk."

"You'll take care of it." The Chief said.

"I'm doing everything I can, but you people have to realize..." Snyder stopped as two men arrive.

"Snyder, what's going on here?" One asks the Principal.

"Backed up sewer line. Same thing happened in San Diego just last week." He answered and they watched the two men continue into the building.

"We're on a Hellmouth. Sooner or later, people are gonna figure that out." He said to the Chief, who looked back at him sternly.

"The city council was told that you could handle this job. If you feel that you can't, perhaps you'd like to take that up... with the Mayor." With that said, the Chief walked away, leaving Snyder behind.

"I'll handle it. I will." Snyder said then turned back to the school which was obviously closed for the remainder of the day.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: That other thing**

**A/N1: Some content taken from , and these characters are not mine.**

**Earlier that evening:**

Drusilla sifted through the dirt in one of the large planters. Spike was in his wheelchair, and Angelus perched on the bench behind Drusilla.

"Maybe I'll sleep underground. Dig myself a little burrow." Dru said to them, watching the dirt flow through her pale fingers.

"What about your pretty dress, sweet? It'll get all dirty." Spike asked her, watching his love with a tender expression.

"Then I'll sleep naked. Like the animals do."

"You know, I suddenly like this plan." Angelus commented, watching her as she lay down on the ground in front of the planter.

"Fortunately, nobody cares what you like, mate." Spike told him, scowling.

"Oh yeah? Let's ask Dru." He answered, sliding off of the bench and crouching down to look at Drusilla; who's begun to laugh as she had a vision.

"There's a gate!" She rolled onto her back, still laughing. "It's opening!" She got to her knees, only half aware of Angelus and Spike watching her.

"Incoming! I love when she does this." Angelus said delightedly.

"What gate, pet? What do you see?" Spike asked her, leaning forward in his chair to rest his elbows on his knees.

Dru bounced gleefully, "It's black." She started to hum, "It wants her."

Angelus crawled up behind her, "Wants who?"

"The Slayer. It's time, Angel." She stood up, "She's ready for you now." She began to sway from side to side, "She's dancing. Dancing with death."

"Big deal. He won't do anything. Our man Angel here likes to talk but he's not much for action. All hat and no cattle." Spike taunted, wanting to annoy his grand-sire to get his attention away from his beloved.

Angelus grabbed Dru's waist, "I don't know about that." He turned her around, "I think this whole Slayer thing has run its course." He crouched down by her, "I'm ready to focus my energy elsewhere."

"Really?" Spike growled.

"Oh, yeah! What, with you being Special Needs Boy, I figure I should stick close to home." Angelus said, walking his fingers up Dru's thigh and waist, taunting Spike. "You and Dru can always use another pair of hands."

Drusilla cooed with delight and Angelus chuckled maniacally. Spike looked at the two of them angrily.

**A little bit later:**

Dean was seated next to Sam at the small table in the library, leaning his chair back on the hind legs and looking thoroughly bored. Buffy and Willow and Giles were occupying the other chairs, Buffy and Giles looking in books, while Willow and Sam searched the city's archives. Oz had left a little bit ago, saying he had practice that night.

"Unfortunately, he doesn't know exactly what he wants. That's the trouble. See, many times the spirit is plagued by all manner of worldly troubles. Being dead, it has no way to make its peace. So it lashes out, growing ever more confused, ever angrier." Giles explained to the group, Buffy and Willow looked at Dean and Sam who nodded in agreement.

"So it's a normal teenager, only dead." Buffy summed up and Dean smirked, but nodded again.

"Well, what can we do? Is there any way to stop it?" Willow asked.

"Uh, the only tried and true way is to work out what unresolved issues keep it here, and resolve them." Giles answered, sitting on the table.

"Fabulous. Now we're Dr. Laura for the deceased." Buffy scoffed, and Sam laughed at her reference.

"Only if we can find out whom this spirit is." Giles stated, and then considered the matter. "Or was."

"Hey, our way works too," Dean interjected, "find out who they are, salt-and-burn baby!"

"Maybe, but we need some alternate ghost theories. What do we know?"

"Dog spit is cleaner than human."

"Besides that?" Buffy answered, rolling her eyes at Dean's quip, who just smirked shamelessly.

"Oh, boy, we know plenty." Willow said, looking up and waving them closer as she got a hit on something. She scrolled through a newspaper article on her laptop, on which the headline read 'Sunnydale High Jock Kills Lover, Self.'

"It says a student murdered a teacher on the night of the Sadie Hawkins Dance. The rumor was they were having an affair, and she tried to break it off. After he killed her, he went into the music room and shot himself." Sam said, reading aloud.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a ghost. It is one of those two, right?" Dean clarified, looking at Buffy and Giles.

"It all fits: the gun, the Sadie Hawkins Dance."

"How come you've never heard about this murder-suicide thing before? When did it happen?" Dean asked the resident Sunnydale crew, reading again over Sam's shoulder.

"1955." Buffy answered, causing Willow, Sam, Giles and Dean to look at her, surprised.

"How did you know?" Willow voiced what they were all thinking.

"I saw it on a paper from that dream-thing I had in class the other day." She answered, thinking back to the students and the teacher and the boy, realizing that they were the ones they were currently researching. None of them noticed that night had fallen, nor the entrance of Angelus until they heard his mocking voice.

"Well lookie here, the white hats have it all figured out. They got a little ghostie on their backs." He taunted, walking closer. Dean shifted so he was blocking Sammy, knowing better than to try to do the same to Buffy; she could handle herself.

"Winchester," Angelus purred, drawing the knife he'd shoved into him the last time they met, seeing his movement. "I did say we'd do this again."

"How'd you get in here?" Buffy ground out, to pull his attention away from Dean and towards her.

"I was invited, like I told the late Mrs. Calendar, before I killed her of course." He smirked at Giles, who tensed and made as if to attack the vampire. Willow put a hand on his arm to hold him back, and Buffy gave him a brief look.

"As much as I'd love to kick your ass now and talk never, I gotta ask, what are you doing here Dead Boy?" Dean asked, seeing the reaction that the vampire caused in Buffy's Watcher. He really needed to get Sammy out of here, but couldn't risk focusing Angelus' attention upon him by making a run for the door. He took a step forward, and after a quick glance at Willow, she edged herself over to shield Sam from the vampire's view in his place.

"You see, a little birdie told me that our Slayer here was dancing with death, and I just wanted front row seats. Wonder if Xander will be able to bring you back this time?" He smirked at Buffy, hearing Dean's sharp intake of breath as he figured out what he meant; that Buffy had to have died once before. They had **a lot** to talk about now, he vowed.

"Yeah, see, I don't really think I'm going to be dying again anytime soon," She quipped, shifting into a fighting stance, knowing that she and Dean were going to have another long talk later; if the look he gave her was any hint. "But I'd be happy to send you to hell."

He smirked and threw Dean's knife, which she ducked, and it embedded in the wall. She jumped into the air in a back-kick and he easily caught her ankle and tossed her to the floor. Dean moved forward, punching out with his left arm, catching Angelus in the temple. Angelus grabbed Dean's shirt and threw him into a stack of books above the rail, and he slumped, unconscious. Sam yelled for Dean and threw salt at Angelus, making him take a step back, giving Buffy the chance to knock him to the ground by sweeping her leg under his feet.

She straddled him, and then poised her stake just above his heart, and he started to laugh. "Oh Buffy, you don't get it do you? They'll never understand you, the darkness inside. That even now, you're just a little turned on by this." He mocked her, and she pressed the stake down into his chest, but not breaking the skin.

"You're sick." She growled at him, and he laughed again.

"I'm evil, what's your excuse?" He chuckled, and then threw her off him. He got to his feet and looked back at them: Buffy was a few feet away on the ground, the other Winchester and Willow were huddled around Dean, trying to wake him, and Giles was standing in front of them with a crossbow aimed at his chest. "Next time, kids."

He sauntered past Buffy and out the door, and Giles dropped the crossbow to run to Buffy's side. He helped her up and she gripped his arm, walking over to where Dean was still knocked out.

"We need to get him back to the hotel," Sam told her, throwing Dean's arm around his shoulder to help him to his feet. Buffy went to Dean's other side, putting his other arm over her shoulder and helped maneuver Dean into a standing position between them.

"He's right, we need to regroup tomorrow, figure this out. Meet back here at noon, and everyone be careful." She told the rest of them in her authority-voice, and they all nodded, stepping out of the way so they could carry Dean down the small staircase and towards the door.

Once they made it back to the hotel, they laid Dean down on his bed, Sam redid the salt line, and went to the bathroom to wet a washcloth and put some ice in it to make an ice pack. Buffy called her mom, told her she'd be spending the night with Willow, and that she'd see her tomorrow after school. She didn't plan to leave either of the boys that night, and knew Dean would want to hear about her dying at the hands of the Master almost a year before when he woke.

Sam kept watch with Buffy over Dean, who was still unconscious, but when he started nodding off, she coaxed him into his bed, promising to wake him if anything changed. She spotted a coffee maker in the corner and brewed a pot, not wanting to fall asleep. She flipped on the TV and turned the volume down, only half paying attention to whatever movie she'd settled on. Her hearing was sharp enough where she could hear what was being said, as well as any signs of Dean coming to.

Dean groaned and his eyes fluttered open and shut, and the first thing he was aware of was that his head hurt like hell. The second was that he was lying down, in what appeared to be his hotel bed. Which raised the question of how in the hell he'd gotten there when the last thing he remembered was taking a swing at Angelus before flying several feet and then his head exploding.

He struggled to sit up, but felt a strong hand on his chest, and he glanced up to see Buffy, watching him with concern. He decided to ease himself up to lean against the pillow at his back, taking the ice pack with a grunt of thanks and placing it on his head. He looked over at Sam, making sure his brother was in one piece, then back at Buffy, raising an eyebrow in question.

"How you doing?" She asked, wanting to forego the inevitable Q and A session.

"I'm in pain, how do you think I'm doing?" He growled, but then felt bad for lashing out at her until he remembered what Angelus had said. "Please tell me you staked that undead son of a bitch?"

"No, he got away. I will, though, soon."

"Buffy I know you loved him, but you can't keep doing this little dance with him." He told her, meeting her eyes.

"I know," she whispered, breaking his gaze to look over at Sam's sleeping form. The two sat in silence for a long moment before he cleared his throat.

"Buffy, if you want to keep your little secrets that's fine, whatever, but don't treat me like an idiot. I don't expect you to tell me everything, but some things would be nice. Like the fact that you died once?"

Buffy winced slightly at the heat in his tone, but then met his gaze. Things had been fine earlier, now they were on the verge of fighting again. She expected to see anger in his eyes, accusations even, but not sadness and shadows, and she leaned towards him.

"There was a prophecy," she began, looking down at the bedspread. "Last year, it said that I would be the one to release the Master, to open the Hellmouth. I was only 16, I didn't want to die. I tried to fight my Calling, tried to avoid what I knew would happen, and Giles went to fight the Master in my place. He was almost killed, and I realized that I had to do it. I couldn't turn my back on what it meant to be a Slayer, even if the cost was my life.

"I found the Anointed One and followed him into the Master's lair, Angel- back when he was still good- and Xander followed me. I walked into that place knowing I had to fight with all I had, and I did, but the Master was better. He bit me and drank my blood," She told him, still speaking quietly, drawing her hair to one side to show him the barely-there scar that he didn't even glance at, his gaze was focused solely on her. Somewhere in the time she'd begun to speak, he'd reached for her hand, wrapping it in his.

"Slayer blood was enough to break the barrier, and he drained enough of mine, and dropped me into a pool of water. I drowned, Dean, for a minute. Next thing I knew, Xander's above me and he's telling me that he did CPR, and that I died."

There was another long silence as she finished, and Dean mulled over her story, then pulled her towards him. He scooted over, wincing as he agitated his sore head, but gave her enough room to curl up against him. Neither of them said anything, just held onto each other until they drifted to sleep, her head on his chest and his arm wrapped tightly around her.

**A/N2- A couple of Xander's lines I modified to Dean, since Xander is still with Cordelia and not in the library.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: Working the case**

**A/N: I realized I missed another ghostly interaction from the show so I squeezed it into this chapter. Some dialogue and content from . The characters aren't mine, even if I wish they were haha. On to the next chapter!**

**Two nights ago:**

George, the janitor, was doing his usual mopping. Behind him a classroom door opened, and a teacher came out to go home. "Working late Ms. Frank?" He asked, stopping for a moment.

"My fault, let myself get behind." She noticed the wet floor and stopped, "Is it okay to walk here George? It is George, right?"

"Oh, yes ma'am. You go ahead."

"Thanks." She continued on her way. "You have a nice evening."

"You too. Drive safe." George looked up at her, "Oh, Ms. Frank?

"Yes?" She looked back at him.

George dropped his mop and approached her, "You can't make me disappear just because you say it's over."

Ms. Frank shook her head at him, "There's no way we can be together." She stepped closer, "No way people will ever understand. Accept it."

"Is that what this is about? What other people think?"

"No! I just want you to be able to have some kind of a normal life. We can never have that. Don't you see?"

"I don't give a damn about a normal life! I'm going crazy not seeing you. I think about you every minute." George insisted, and she stepped closer, putting her hand on his cheek. He looked down sadly.

"I know. But it's over. It has to be." She turned around and started to leave. He looked up again and started to chase after her.

George jerked back and yelled angrily, "Come back here! We're not finished yet!" He grabbed her by the arm and turned her around to face him. "You don't care anymore? Is that it?"

"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter what I feel." Ms. Frank sobbed, trying futilely to break away.

"Then tell me you don't love me." George shook her, "Say it!"

"Will that help? Is that what you have to hear? I don't. I don't. Now let me go." She resumed her efforts to get away.

"No. A person doesn't just wake up one day and stop loving somebody." A gun materialized in his hand. He took a step back, raised the revolver, pulled the hammer back and aimed it at her. She looked at the gun, frightened. "Love is forever."

Giles was in his office at the library, still working. The group had already gone home for the night and he was on his way as well. He didn't even pay attention to the faint voices of George and Ms. Frank as they continued their quarrel.

"I'm not afraid to use it. I swear. If I can't be with you..." George said.

"Oh, my God." Ms. Frank turned to run down the hallway and away from the gun and George.

"DON'T WALK AWAY FROM ME, BITCH!"

Giles finally noticed George's loud yelling and looked up from his desk. He got up, took off his glasses, and walked out of his office to the area behind the checkout counter. There he heard a faint female voice. "I need you." He looked around for a moment, and then jumped to a conclusion. "Jenny." He went out into the hallways and arrived at the hall intersection.

"Don't!"

Giles looked in the direction of George's voice and saw him out on the balcony holding a gun up to Ms. Frank.

"Don't do that, damn it! Don't talk to me like I'm some dumb..." The gun went off; Giles rushed to the other side of the intersection and hid behind the corner, watching the events as they unfolded. Outside Ms. Frank went into shock from the bullet wound and began to fall backward. She tumbled over the balcony railing down to the base of the stairs below. There George saw her lying dead with her eyes closed.

He panicked and ran into the hall. As he reached the intersection Giles rushed out, grabbed him, and tackled him to the floor. George lost his grip on the gun and it slid away. As it did so, it dissolved and disappeared in a whiff of black vapor. George raised his head as Giles got to his knees behind him and held him down.

"What's going on?" George asked him, confused.

"What's going on? You just shot a woman." Giles told the stunned man.

They were in the library the next day, huddled around the small table. Willow and Xander next to each other, Buffy was in a chair, and Dean was leaning over on the back of it, listening. He'd told Sam to stay behind at the hotel, not wanting to chance that he might get hurt should they be attacked again.

"It was just as with the, the couple you encountered the other night, Buffy. The, the janitor remembered everything. He knew he'd killed this poor woman, but he had no idea why. Well, they had no intimate relationship." Giles told them all.

"What about the gun? Did you find it?" Dean asked him.

"No, no. The police, everybody, we searched high and low. I think it's very clear what's happening here." Giles went into the cage to put some books away.

"Fill me in then, 'cause I've read the book, seen the movie, and I'm still fuzzy about what's going on." Xander answered, and they all nodded.

"It's Jenny."

"What?" Buffy asked him, surprised.

"It's who now?" Asked Dean, but they all ignored his question. Xander instead asking Giles, "You think she's the ghost?"

"Well, don't you see? Well, she-she-she died here under tragic circumstances, a-a-and now she's trapped."

"But what about the gun? I mean, Angelus didn't shoot Ms. Calendar." At Willow's hesitant statement, Dean glanced sharply at Buffy, who avoided his gaze.

"The gun is insignificant. It's the violence of the thing that matters." Giles answered her, oblivious to the doubtful looks the others exchanged, and the way that Dean took a step back from her chair, crossing his arms. Giles went back into his office.

"I don't know. These fights these couples keep having, it's sort of... specific." Buffy told him, aware that Dean was no longer behind her. He'd known that Angel was killing people, so that wasn't why he was angry, no, it had to do with the fact that she hadn't told him again. She really needed to stop doing that...

"She's right. It's a pattern that doesn't fit with the way Ms. Calendar died." Willow agreed, looking at Dean with sympathy and then towards Giles' office as he emerged.

"Yes, well, I, uh, I appreciate your thoughts on the matter, I, in fact I... well, I encourage you to, to always, uh, challenge me, uh, when you feel it's appropriate. You should never be cowed by authority." He told them, then starts back in, but comes back out to look at them again. "Except, of course, in this instance, when I am clearly right and you are clearly wrong." He went back into his office, leaving them looking at each other sadly.

"Well that's just swanky, anyone want to tell me who Jenny is?"

"This is freaky. I don't ever remember ever seeing Giles be this weird." Willow said from one of the desks. They were all in the computer lab in the deserted school; she at the desk, typing at her laptop. Xander was leaning on a table behind her, Dean next to him. Buffy walked to the other side of the desk.

"I know. He's usually Investigate-things-from-every-boring-angle guy. Now he's I-Cling-Onto-my-one-lame-idea guy. What gives?" Xander mused aloud.

"He misses her. He can't think. Just a little more fallout from my love life." Buffy said, and Dean watched her, his expression unreadable.

"Okay, but this ghost stuff is something else. Let me see if I can pull up that shooting we found the other day." Willow said, and then smiled triumphantly when it came up again.

"Yahtzee." Dean said, and she smiled at him.

Buffy set the 1955 Sunnydale High yearbook on the desk and opened it to a picture of Ms. Newman. "Okay, here's the new strangeness. These were the two I dreamt about the other day in class." She pointed to Grace and James, and they all leaned closer to see.

"Jim Stanley? He's the one. He did it." Willow nodded.

"Your dreams are getting wicked accurate, Buff. You wouldn't happen to see me coming across some big cash? Or possibly knowing the love of a woman? In a full body sense?" Xander joked, then blushed when Dean snickered at him.

Buffy ignored them, "He couldn't make her love him, so he killed her; sicko." She stepped away.

"He looks so normal on this picture. He was smart, too. He made the honor roll." Willow said, still looking at the yearbook picture and at her computer screen.

"Smart?" Buffy said, looking at Willow incredulously.

"He wasn't smart when he did it, was he?" Dean seconded.

"He killed a person and killed himself. Those are pretty much two of the dumbest things you could do." Xander commented, to which Dean nodded in agreement.

"I know, but... Well, don't you feel kind of bad for them?"

"Sure I feel lousy. For her. He's a murderer and he should pay for it." Buffy answered vehemently.

"With his life?"

"No, he should be doing sixty years in a prison, breaking rocks and making special friends with Roscoe the Weightlifter." Dean snorted but continued to watch her, silently agreeing.

"Yikes. The quality of mercy is not Buffy," Xander stated.

"I gotta say, I agree with her." Dean replied, his gaze meeting hers for a moment, before she looked away once more.

"Whose ghost do you think we're dealing with? His or hers?" Willow asked finally, breaking the awkward moment.

"Well, considering how violent it is, I'm gonna say his," Dean answered, and Buffy nodded.

"That tracks," Xander agreed.

"Well, I've been browsing on some of Ms. Calendar's pagan sites. Maybe I can find a way to communicate with them and... we can find out what he wants." Willow said, turning to face them.

"Who cares what he wants? We need to shut him down before some other innocent guy goes and kills some poor nice girl and then blows his brains out all over the music room wall." Buffy commented, ignoring the glances between them.

"Right. Well, who wants pie?" Dean joked to break the tense air, rubbing his hands together.

**Buffy's house that night, in her room:**

Buffy was on her bed, Xander in her wicker chair, Cordelia was kneeling and leaning against the bed, Willow was standing, and Dean leaned against her dresser, looking down at the floor.

"Remember the plan to contact the spirit and talk to it? Scrap that plan. Buffy, you were right. The time for touchy-feely communication is passed. I've done some homework and found the only solution is the final solution." Willow stated to the quiet group.

"Nuke the school?" Xander smiled, "I like that."

"Hell yeah!" Dean agreed, and they exchanged high fives, the girls rolled their eyes.

"Not quite; exorcism."

"Are you crazy? I saw that movie! Even the priest died." Cordelia protested, and Dean laughed.

"What's the deal?" Buffy asked Willow, ignoring both the guys and Cordelia.

Willow laid down a map of the school building, and they all leaned in to look. "Okay, see here, the balcony? That's where the original teacher died back in 1955 and that teacher last night. That's the hot spot where all the bad mojo is coming from. We need to create a Mangus-tripod."

"A what?" Dean and Cordelia asked at the same time.

"One person chants here on the hot spot. And the other three chant in other places around the school forming a triangle. It's supposed to bind the bad spirit and keep it from doing any more harm." Willow answered, pointing to each spot as she explained.

"Well, I'll take the hot spot." Buffy said, picking up the map, "If there's trouble, that's where it'll be."

"I'm with Buffy, no way am I missing any action," Dean said quickly; Willow nodded, having expected that he'd choose to back her up.

"This ghost, this James guy, is fixating on you, Buffy. The dreams, the yearbook... You sure you can handle it?" Xander asked her, and they all looked at her, waiting for her response.

"Well, I'm hoping he'll show. I truly am." Buffy answered him darkly, seeming to see something none of the rest could.

"Alright then, let's get this show on the road!" Dean stated, anxious for some action finally.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: The fun begins**

**A/N: Okay so this one and the next jumps around a little bit, same as the episode, so try to keep up. The characters still are not mine, and some content and dialogue used from .**

"Okay, we all have our places. We do the chant and light the candle at midnight exactly. Any questions?" Buffy asked the group around her, as they all came into the hallway from outside.

"Yeah, what if this mangled triangle thingy doesn't work?" Cordelia asked.

"Then we try the hunter approach," Dean answered, his gun filled with rock salt casually slung over one shoulder. "Salt and burn, bastard bites it."

"Oh! I almost forgot. I made us all scapulas." Willow remembered and handed them out.

"Okay, so we can flip the ghost over when it turns a nice golden brown?" Xander asked her, looking at her in confusion.

"Scapula, not spatula. Um, you wear it around your neck for protection."

"You expect me to wear this? It smells like grandpa breath," Cordelia objected, wrinkling her nose.

"Sorry, I didn't have a lot of time. I had to use sulfur, stinky, but effective."

"Strange lives." Dean grimaced, but put his over his head to rest on his chest, the others doing the same.

"Okay, let's do this." Buffy stated as they reached the student lounge.

"No problem. This will be a piece of cake. Right?" Cordelia said her voice only a little shaky.

Suddenly, they heard a creaking and then a crashing noise; they jumped and looked in that direction to see that the doors at the end of the hall had slammed shut on their own. One by one, the other doors at the ends of the two intersecting halls slammed shut, effectively locking them in.

"Okay Wierdy Mcwierderton...this just got even more fun," Dean commented after a moment of silence, and they all split up; Willow staying at the Lounge's landing, Xander to the cafeteria, Cordelia to one of the bathrooms on the other end of the school, and Buffy and Dean towards the balcony.

Willow walked along and slowed down to look down the other hall before continuing. Behind her, Giles opened the door and she screamed out in fright. He startled and yelled out, too.

"God, Willow, what are you doing here? You're not supposed to be inside." Giles asked her once they'd both calmed down.

"Me? What about you?" She countered, her heart still beating fast.

"I'm trying to, uh..." Giles answered, putting on his glasses, "I think I may be close to contacting Jenny." He stammered, not looking at her this time. Willow gave him an understanding look and he started to go back into the library, but turned back to look at her again. "What's that smell?" He asked her, catching the odd scent.

"It's my scapula."

"Ah, right, of course. Did you use sulfur?"

"Yeah."

"That's clever. Run along then. There may be some paranormal phenomena if I contact her. You don't want to be in the line of fire." Giles told her, and then went back in, the door swinging shut behind him.

"Okay. 'Night."

**Bathroom:**

Cordelia went in with her candle and flashlight and looked around the deserted room. She glanced in the sink mirror at her reflection with a bandage on her cheek. She walked over to it and set the candle down on the shelf. She pulled off the bandage and winced at the pain, leaning toward the mirror, she inspected the twin fang marks on her cheek.

**Hallway:**

Dean and Buffy walked along and heard the song 'I Only Have Eyes for You' playing somewhere. Down another hall they could see shadows in a bright light dancing against a wall. They exchanged a look and walked closer to the music.

_**'My love must be a kind of blind love,'**_

They walked toward the sound and through a pair of doors.

_**'I can't see anyone but you,'**_

Beyond them was another set of doors to the music room. A Class of '55 Sadie Hawkins Dance flyer was taped to one of the door windows. They stepped over to the other door and looked in, and there they saw James and Grace dancing slowly to the music.

**Cafeteria:**

There were still a few snakes there, Xander went in and looked around. "Oh, yeah, baby, it's snakalicious in here," he joked to cover his nerves.

**Landing:**

Willow stepped up to it and looked around nervously.

**Hallway:**

Dean and Buffy watched James and Grace slowly turn as they danced, neither saying a word.  
She felt his presence behind her, and the reassuring feel of his chest at her back calmed her nerves. She felt better knowing that he was next to her, even after finding out about Angelus killing Mrs. Calendar and that Willow hadn't told him and Sam the truth their first day.

**_'The moon may be high,_**_  
_**_but I can't see a thing in the sky'_**

Then James turned into view again, Buffy gasped when she saw that his face was all rotted.

_**''Cause I only have eyes for you.'**_

Buffy stared back in open-mouthed shock, momentarily forgetting Dean, until she heard him mutter something about 'ugly-sons-of-bitches'. James and Grace were suddenly gone a moment later, and she looked at Dean, who nodded to her unspoken question.

"They know we're here."

**Bathroom:**

Cordelia dug in her purse for some makeup, intending to hide the fang marks. When she looked back up to put some on, the side of her face with the snakebite suddenly looked rotted. She screamed at the top of her lungs.

**Landing:**

Willow set her candle down on the floor, but below her feet the floor suddenly started to swirl, and a green demonic hand reached up and grabbed her, pulling her down. She screamed for all she was worth, and grabbed the stair railing to keep from being pulled in.  
"GILES!"

He heard her screams and ran toward her, "WILLOW!"

"GILES! GILES!" The pull was too strong, and she lost her grip on the railing.

"WHERE ARE YOU?!" He ran into the lounge area, and saw her struggling on the landing.

"PLEASE! HELP! HELP ME!"

He saw her sinking into the floor and scrambled up the stairs to her aid, hearing her yell again, "HELP! HELP! HELP! HELP!"

He grabbed her arms and started to pull, she screamed again as the pit continued to try to suck her in; Giles let out a grunt and managed to slowly lift her out. Once she was free of the pit, she suddenly snapped into his arms, and they both went rolling down the stairs.

**Balcony:**

Suddenly, Buffy sensed something and stared off into space. She saw a vision of Ms. Newman running out of the hall onto the balcony, being chased by James with his gun.

"Stop!" James yelled to the fleeing image of Ms. Newman, and she turned so she was facing James.

"Just calm down." She tried, hoping to talk sense into vision-James. James shook the gun at her, and it went off. Ms. Newman clutched her chest over the bullet wound, pulling her hand away she looked at the blood; Buffy was astonished.

She saw James walking into the music room, and putting on a record. She noticed that he was crying, he raised the gun to his head, still crying as he pulls the trigger. Suddenly, James appeared with a rotted face and grabbed her by the arms. "Get out!"

"Hey!" Dean shouted, and shot a round at James. The vision of him faded quickly, and she took a few steps back. Dean looked her over carefully, while still keeping an eye for any other appearances. She nodded breathlessly at him, assuring him that she was alright.

**Bathroom:**

Cordelia was panting with fear, covering her face with her hands; she looked into the mirror again, her face was suddenly normal, and she pulled her hands away to take a closer look and tried to calm down a bit.

**Landing:**

Giles got up and walked up a few steps to make sure that the pit was gone, and then came back down to Willow. "Are you all right?"

Willow, who was still frightened, answered "Giles," she shook her head. "Jenny could never be this mean."

Giles glanced up at the landing, his heart sinking in disappointment with the realization. "I know." He sat beside her on one of the steps, "It's not her, is it?" He asked, already knowing his answer, his Jenny would never try to hurt any of them.

"I'm sorry." Willow told him, just then, the town clock started to strike midnight. "Oh, God. Oh!" She remembered, scrambling back up to the landing to light the candle, he followed.

"Be careful up here!" He warned, watching her fumble with the lighter.

**Bathroom:**

Cordelia was nervous but ready with her candle and lighter.

**Balcony:**

Buffy struck a match and lit her candle, Dean watched with his gun in hand a few feet away.

**Landing:**

Willow struggled with her lighter; Giles crouched down, took it from her, and lit the candle. "I shall confront and expel all evil," she began the incantation.

**Bathroom:**

Cordelia lit her candle, "I shall _totally_ confront and expel all evil."

**Cafeteria:**

Xander was sitting on a table with his lit candle before him, his legs crossed, and his hands folded. "Out of marrow and bone..."

**Balcony:**

"Out of house and home... never to come here again." Buffy finished, and Dean glanced around, checking for any signs of ghost activity.

**Landing:**

Giles and Willow looked around, but nothing was happening there either.

**Cafeteria:**

Xander opened his eyes; all was quiet, except for the snakes on the floor below him.

**Bathroom:**

Cordelia looked around also, finding that all seemed quiet there too.

**Balcony:**

Buffy watched as a breeze blew out her candle, and they looked in the direction of the gust.  
"Oh crap," Dean muttered, going closer to her side.

**Landing:**

The candle there had been blown out too, and Giles and Willow exchanged a look.

**Cafeteria:**

Xander's candle was out also, he looked around nervously.

**Bathroom:**

Cordelia watched the smoke drift from the glowing wick, her candle having gone out as well.

**Landing:**

Giles and Willow went down the stairs and looked down the hall, hearing a faint buzzing. It steadily got louder; the source coming into view at the far end of the hall, where they saw a dark swarm of wasps coming toward them.

"Oh my God!" Giles exclaimed, and they broke into a dead run. As they rounded a corner Buffy, Dean, and Cordelia joined them from another hall. "Are you all right?"

"If we don't get out of here we won't be!" Dean yelled at him, looking over his shoulder at the wasps. Xander came running out of the cafeteria as they passed, and kept pace. They reached the far end of the hall where the doors were jammed shut. Dean tried to shoot at them, with no luck.

"Get back!" Buffy ordered. Dean and Giles backed off and Buffy kicked the door open, shattering the glass. They all immediately ran out, the wasps right behind them. When they reached the street, Xander looked back and stopped running.

"Check it," he commented to the others, who all stopped and turned as well. "I'd say school's out for good."

They all stared in amazement, Giles taking off his glasses. The wasps had arranged themselves in a wall around the school so that nothing could get in or out.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16: Possessed**

**A/N: Okay a couple more chapters! Characters don't belong to me, some content and dialouge from **

**Buffy's house:**

She was leaning against the wall, Giles and the others were seated around the coffee table, except for Dean, who was standing in the doorway. Giles poured some tea for himself; there was also a pot of coffee for the others.

"The good news is none of you girls were shot. Well, we've established, based on all the parallels and Buffy's visions, that it's James' spirit." Giles stated to the group.

"So what do we do, Giles? About James," Willow asked him.

"Well, he's obviously reliving the night of the Sadie Hawkins Dance when he killed Ms. Newman. It's common enough for a spirit to do this, to recreate a tragedy."

"Hey. If Sunnydale High School shuts down forever, do we automatically graduate?" Cordelia spoke up, munching on a cracker.

Xander and the rest ignored her and he asked Giles, "Why though? What does he want?" He thought again about Cordelia's question, then turned to her, "Actually, that's an interesting point."

"He's trying to resolve whatever issues are keeping him in limbo. What exactly those are, I'm not..." Giles answered, ghosts weren't something he had much experience with, after all.

"He wants forgiveness." Buffy interrupted, and they all looked at her for a moment.

Giles leaned back then got up, "Yes, I imagine he does." He went to her, and she looked up at him. "But when James possesses people, they act out exactly what happened that night. So he's experiencing a form of purgatory instead. I mean, he's doomed to kill his Ms. Newman over and over again, and forgiveness is impossible."

"Good. He doesn't deserve it," Buffy said harshly. Dean looked over at Buffy, his expression carefully blank; he'd been quiet up till now.

"To forgive is an act of compassion, Buffy. It's not done because people deserve it. It's done because they need it." Giles told her, cleaning his glasses. One day she was going to count exactly how many times her Watcher did that, but the humor in that random thought escaped her due to the gravity of the situation.

"No, James destroyed the one person he loved the most in a moment of blind passion. And that's not something you forgive. No matter why he did what he did, and no matter if he knows now that it was wrong and selfish and stupid, it is just something he's gonna have to live with."

"He can't live with it, Buff. He's dead." Xander interjected softly. She just looked back at them all for a moment, and then stalked off into the kitchen; Dean followed her silently.

"Okay, over identify much?" Cordelia stated, still munching on her cracker.

Dean came in to see Buffy with her hands in her pockets; she pulled out a folded sheet of paper. She unfolded it, it was a Class of '55 Sadie Hawkins Dance flyer; she set down the flyer and heard a faint male voice. "I need you."

She started for the kitchen door, but Dean got in her way. "You're not going back there," He told her, knowing where she was headed, and damned if he'd let her. He crossed his arms over his chest defiantly.

"I have to." She said, her voice faraway, and she looked off in the distance.

"Buffy, what is it?" Dean asked, taking a step closer to her and putting his hands on her shoulders; the look in her eyes and the tone of her voice worried him.

"I'm sorry Dean," She said, finally looking at him, he looked confused and she punched him, knocking him out. "He needs me," She said as he fell to the floor and she left.

Back in the living room, Willow got up from her chair, "So what do we do next? Do we go in again?"

"Well, not now. No, the, uh... the spirit is too angry, too, too powerful. No, we have to work out exactly how and, and if this thing can be defeated," Giles answered.

The school was still surrounded by the swarm of wasps, but Buffy walked up to it anyway. The swarm parted to let her in. When she reached the doors they opened for her, and the swarm closed the gap behind her.

"Hey, Buffy, are you..." Willow asked as she entered the kitchen, she heard Dean groan, who was coming to. She rushed over to help him up, and saw the flyer lying on the island and picked it up.

"She's gone dammit." Dean swore, leaning against the counter, holding his head.

"Oh God, Giles!" Willow called, and he came into the kitchen. His gaze swept around the empty room, taking in Buffy's absence and Dean holding his head. He felt his heart skip a beat at Willow's next words, "She went back."

They all stood in front of the school looking at the swarm, and Xander joked nervously, "So what now? Not even a mega-vat of Raid's gonna do the trick here."

"I don't get it. Is she trying to be a big loner hero or something?" Cordelia asked and Dean growled at her, briefly considering the merits of shooting her with a salt round.

"No. I believe she's under the spirit's thrall. He's, he's calling her." Cordelia asked Giles why again, and he answered, "James needs her to re-enact everything that happened on the night that he, he killed Ms. Newman. He wants to change things, make a happy ending."

"Screw that!" Dean grumbled, and started for the door, wasps be damned; but Xander pulled him back.

"But it can't ever happen! It always ends the same, which means Buffy just went in there to get shot, Giles."

"Yes. But the school is deserted. There's no way for James to... to play his part. There's, there's no man inside for him to possess."

"So Buffy should be safe until we find a way to get her out?" Xander clarified, and Dean stopped struggling for the moment to hear the answer.

"In theory, yeah," Willow said, and Dean looked back up at the school, worry plain on his face.

"She better be."

Buffy walked idly through the halls, stopping by the trophy case and turned around, she saw Angelus behind her.

"Fun fact about wasps," he said to her. "They have no taste for the undead. Not that a sting would do me any damage, it's just... tonight's special. I wanted to look my best for you."

"You're the only one. The only person I can talk to." Buffy told him quietly.

"Gosh, Buff. That's really pathetic," He smirked, and she turned to face him.

"You can't make me disappear just because you say it's over."

"Actually..." Angelus approached her, "I can. In fact... I just want you to be able to have some kind of normal life. We can never have that, don't you see?"

"I don't give a _damn_ about a normal life! I'm going crazy not seeing you. I think about you every minute." She said through gritted teeth, and he raised his hand to her cheek.

**Flashback:**

Grace put her hand on James' cheek, and he looks down sadly. "I know. But it's over. It has to be!" She says to him, then turns around and starts to leave. He looks up again and starts to chase after her.

**Now:**

"Come back here! We're not finished!" Buffy cried, chasing after him. She grabbed him by the arm and turned him around to face her. "You don't care anymore, is that it?"

"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter what I feel," Angelus sobbed.

"Then tell me you don't love me!"

**Then:**

"Say it!" James insists.

"Is that what you need to hear? Will that help? I don't." Ms. Newman sobs.

**Now:**

"I don't. Now let me go," Angelus said and tried to go.

"No. A person doesn't just wake up and stop loving somebody!"

**Then:**

Grace looks at James, and he takes a step back, raises a revolver, pulls the hammer back and aims it at her.

**Now:**

Angelus looked at the gun and then at Buffy, frightened. "Love is forever. I'm not afraid to use it, I swear! If I can't be with you..." She said, and he gasped, "Oh, my God!" He turned around and started running out of the hall toward the balcony.

**Then:**

Grace runs from the hall. "DON'T WALK AWAY FROM ME..." James yells after her.

**Now:**

"...BITCH!" Buffy finished, as Angelus ran out of the hall; she ran after him.

**Then:**

James runs after Grace.

**Now:**

Angelus barged through the door out onto the balcony. "Stop it!" She cried to him as she came out the door, "Stop it! Don't make me!"

"All right. Just..." Angelus stopped at the balcony, breathing heavily with fear, and he turned around.

**Then:**

Grace turns around to face James, "You know you don't want to do this. Let's both... just calm down, James, give me the gun." She says and holds out her hand.

"Don't. Don't do that, damn it!" James yells at her, his hand shaking.

**Now:**

"Don't talk to me like I'm some stupid..." Suddenly, the gun went off, and Angelus flinched from the wound. Giles and the others heard the gunshot outside, and Willow drew a worried breath. Dean started to shoot salt rounds at the wasps, trying to get through, but they wouldn't budge.

**Balcony:**

Angelus clutched his hand to his chest, pulling it away to see the blood. He looked at Buffy, who stared back in shock.

"James," he breathed.

**Then:**

Grace goes into shock from the bullet wound and starts to fall backward, tumbling over the balcony railing down to the base of the stairs below.

**Now:**

Buffy just stared in shock, vaguely hearing other gunshots but not registering where they were coming from.

**Then:**

James watches Grace below, dead with her eyes closed. He slowly walks back into the hallway, heading for the music room.

**Now:**

Angelus laid sprawled at the base of the stairs below.

**Music Room:**

As Buffy slowly entered, Angelus' eyes suddenly opened. He propped himself up on his elbows and looked up at the balcony. Buffy walked to the record player at the back of the room, turned it on, and a record started to play.

_**'My love must be a kind of blind love,'**_

Buffy looked over at a mirror, and James looked back at her, instead of her own reflection. Her eyes are full of tears and she looked at him, who gazed down at the gun in their hand.

_**'I can't see anyone but you'**_

She raised the gun, but a hand grabbed it, pushing it back down. She turned, finding herself face to face with Angelus. "Grace!"

"Don't do this."

"But-but I killed you."

"It was an accident. It wasn't your fault."

"Oh, it is my fault. How could I..."

"Shhh... I'm the one who should be sorry, James. You thought I stopped loving you. But I never did. I loved you with my last breath." Angelus told her, and she sobbed, "Shhh... No more tears."

**Then:**

Grace and James kiss.

**Now:**

Angelus and Buffy kissed, holding each other tightly as they continued kissing for a long time. Above them in the ceiling a bright light appeared, and the spirits of Grace and James left this world for the next. As quickly as it appeared, the light disappeared, and Buffy and Angelus gently broke off their kiss and opened their eyes.

"Angel," she breathed, suddenly he growled, pushed her away, and ran from the room, leaving Buffy staring after him in shock.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17: Amends**

**A/N: Characters belong to Whedon and Kripke**

**Later that night:**

Giles paced behind the counter in the library; Dean was sitting at the table, cleaning his gun silently. Willow, Xander and Cordelia came into the library, having just checked the grounds.

"Everything seems normal. Not a snake, not a wasp," Willow announced to the quiet patrons.

"Yep. School can open again tomorrow," Cordelia agreed, then smiled at Xander's comment, "Explain to me again how that's a good thing." They leaned against the counter, "I'm drawing a blank," she answered.

Giles went into his office to check on Buffy, how was resting after her ordeal, "Are you feeling any better?"

"James picked me. I guess... I guess I was the one he could relate to. He was so sad Giles," She told him as he sat beside her.

"Well they can both rest now."

"I still..." She exhaled, "a part of me just doesn't understand why she would forgive him."

"Does it matter?"

"No. I guess not," she answered. Her gaze traveled through his window over to Dean, who had still not said a word to her. Suddenly, his phone ran, and he answered; it was his dad. He set the gun down and walked a few steps away to talk to him, and then he jotted something down on a slip of paper he'd stuffed into his pocket and hung up. He looked down at the paper a moment, and then turned to pick his gun back up.

"I gotta get back to Sam. See you guys tomorrow." He said, and then he strode out the door, not glancing back at Buffy or the others.

"Bye," she said sadly as she watched him go. "Giles, how do I fix this with Dean? There's so much that's happened here that I didn't know how to explain that I kept from him. But now…"

Giles was silent for a moment, and took off his glasses to clean them for what felt like the millionth time that night. "Buffy, you know I don't approve of the way you do things sometimes, but Dean is a nice boy, and he's proved that he's very loyal. Perhaps you just need to talk to him, explain things as best as you can. Somehow I don't think he would just walk away and never come back, he cares about you; I saw that tonight when you were inside with Angelus. Dean would have busted down the doors to get to you if Xander would have let him."

She looked up at him, hope shining in her green eyes, "Really?"

He smiled kindly and nodded, "go talk to him, my dear. I'll see you tomorrow."

Buffy nodded, grabbed her jacket, and strode out of the library with a vague wave at the others, saying she'd see them the next day; she needed to catch up to Dean. She found him at his hotel room twenty minutes later and knocked. He opened it and peered out at her with a slight scowl; he hadn't expected company. He didn't even ask her in, merely opened the door, scowled, and walked away. She took a step inside and noticed two things- the first being that Sam wasn't there, and the second was the two six packs on the nightstand, one already half gone.

"Are you drunk?" She asked, turning to look at him.

"Not yet but I will be." He answered, plopping down on his bed, taking a swig of his drink.

"How'd you even get these?"

"C'mon princess, you really think I don't carry around fake ID's as well as credit cards?" He scoffed, then looked over at her. "Why are you here?"

"How many have you had?" She asked, wanting to avoid that subject for another moment.

"This isn't the first 6 pack I bought, so I don't know… two...twelve...wasn't exactly counting. And you didn't answer my question."

She sat on Sam's vacated bed, set her jacket and purse next to her, and folded her hands on her lap, not looking at him. "I wanted to talk."

"Talk?" He smirked, and took another long pull. "Seems to me we don't really need to, what with you kissing your ex and all." His voice was bitter, he was aware that he was jealous, but he really didn't care.

She'd told them all what happened in the library before going into Giles' office to rest, and it made his stomach turn. He'd wanted to work things out, maybe see if his dad would let them come out to visit her sometimes, but now he just felt stupid.

"Where's Sam?" She asked softly, unable to stop a flinch from the harsh tone of his voice that said he was angry.

"Out, told him to go grab some food to eat or do laundry or something," he answered, downing the last of the beer in his hand and setting it aside with a hard thud. He turned back to her, "Buffy, I don't know what there is to talk about. All you've done from the start is keep secrets and do what you want; no matter what anyone else says."

"Dean, I have to keep secrets, I'm the Slayer, I can't advertise that to the world!" She argued, her own temper rising.

"You kissed your ex!"

"I was possessed!"

"As if that's an excuse," he grumbled, and got to his feet to pace.

"Like you've never been possessed Dean? You guys deal with ghosts and the like a lot more than I have." She countered, making him scowl again at her.

"I never kissed my ex, that's for damn sure."

Buffy sighed and leaned forward, placing her elbows on her knees and her face in her hands for a long moment. "I was possessed and under James' thrall, and so was Angelus, so it wasn't like it was really _me_ kissing him."

"Really? How long was it before you realized the ghosts were gone did you kiss him? Actually no, I don't want to know the answer to that." He said, seeing her open her mouth to answer then realized that he'd only want to kill something, maybe her.

"Dean, I don't love him anymore, I care about you. I'm sorry I knocked you out, but you wouldn't have let me go otherwise," she told him, trying to make him understand.

"You're damned right I wouldn't have!" He growled, "You could have been shot Buffy."

"No, James focused on me, I was safe."

"Why did he focus on you anyway?"

She inhaled, then answered, "Because I can relate to what he's going through."

"What?" He snapped his head to look at her, "What do you mean?"

"James wanted forgiveness for shooting Ms. Newman," she started.

"Yeah I already know that part, skip ahead," he interrupted.

"I can understand because it's my fault Angel lost his soul, and that Angelus killed Ms. Calendar." She answered, dreading the question she knew was coming.

"How's it your fault? How did he break the curse anyway? I'm not going to like this am I?" He asked, seeing the look on her face and groaning.

"I doubt it," she managed a smile and watched him sit back on the end of his bed, his back facing her. "His curse had a loophole; if he achieved a moment of true happiness, he'd lose it."

His silence hung over the room like a dark cloud, and she guessed that he'd already put the pieces together, but she continued anyway.

"My birthday we learned that Angelus' children were planning to assemble the Judge, the demon I told you about before; the one I defeated with a rocket launcher. He was going to take one of the Judge's parts to a distant part of the world, but we were ambushed by other vampires, and hid in his mansion."

She didn't want to say the next part of the story and she could see by the noticeable tensing of his shoulders that he already knew where their night had led. "When I woke up the next day, he wasn't the Angel I knew, the one I loved. He was a monster, and that's when I learned of the clause.

"Ms. Calendar knew about it, being part of the same clan as the girl Angelus' had fed on that created the curse, but she posed as a computer teacher here so she could watch him; watch me. Giles and I realized we'd been played for fools and didn't talk to her after that. She wanted to help, so she tried to restore Angel's soul. He killed her for it. He placed her in Giles' bed, setting the scene with rose petals and music; and Giles went after him. He almost got himself killed in the process, but I was able to get him away. James focused on me because I still feel as if it's my fault Angel lost his soul, and he was right."

Dean sat, thinking over all of the information he'd received then and since he'd come to Sunnydale. "Come here," he grunted, scooting over on the bed, and she obliged.

"You didn't know that would happen, so it's not your fault. And I know you were possessed, but the thought of him kissing you makes me sick, Buffy. I don't know what I would have done if you'd been hurt tonight...wait scratch that…I would have staked Angelus three ways from Sunday."

She managed a half smile and he placed his hand on hers, looking at her intently.

"Is there anything else you haven't told me?" He asked and she shook her head, "okay, good. I don't know if I could handle any more."

"Where do we go from here?" She asked, and he clenched down on his jaw, thinking. She searched his eyes, trying to find some sign of what it was he was hesitant to say.

"Where do you want us to be?"

"I want to be with you, I want to put all of this behind us." She answered, and he kissed her gently on the lips. "Can we do that?"

"Yeah, I think we can." He cupped the back of her neck with one hand and pressed his mouth to hers, almost groaning when she parted her lips to allow his tongue to mesh with hers. He pulled her closer and she straddled his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him back with equal fervor.

They kissed for a long time, each savoring the taste of the other, each fighting for dominance, both so lost in the moment that they didn't even hear the door open and Sam enter until he made a gagging sound.

"C'mon guys, I don't want to see that!" Sam protested loudly, even though he didn't really mean it. He'd watched Dean come back tonight in a sour mood, and made his escape in the guise of getting food so as not to be snapped at by his brother. By the looks of it, they had made up, which he was very relieved about. Dean was such a baby when he was upset, and with any luck he'd be much more approachable now. They pulled apart, Buffy giggled and Dean groaned, and he watched them kiss one more time before they turned to him; neither moving from their intimate position.

"Hey Sam," Buffy greeted, and Dean kissed her forehead and cheek, "What'd you get for food? I'm starved."

"You're always starved," Dean told her affectionately, nuzzling her neck. For the moment he was able to forget that he and Sam had to be on the road again tomorrow, that they were going to be hunting a state away in Nevada, and that he wouldn't be able to see her for at least a week or so. That was tomorrow, and tonight he just wanted to spend it with the two people he enjoyed most.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18: Goodbyes**

**A/N: Well here's the conclusion! Hope you liked this story and read the sequel!**  
**Characters belong to Whedon and Kripke, the song is In the Darkness by Christian Kane.**

**Mansion:**

Angelus was standing by the fountain bare-chested, breathing frantically and scrubbing himself hard with the water.

"You might want to let up. They say when you've drawn blood, you've exfoliated." Spike told him, watching with his usual smirk.

"What do you know about it? I'm the one who was friggin' violated. You didn't have this thing in you." Angelus growled at him, walking from the fountain and passing Spike in disgust.

"What was it? A demon?" Dru asked.

"Love!" He grabbed a clean shirt and started to put it on.

"Poor Angel."

Angelus walked back, "Let's get outta here. I need a real vile kill before sunup to wipe this crap out of my system." He pulled on his jacket over his still-unbuttoned shirt. Drusilla came up to him and growled, he snarled back.

"Of course. We'll find you a nice toddler," she snarled. Angelus started up the stairs out of the garden, but Dru turned back to Spike.

"Want to come, pet?" She asked, and Angelus came back down. "No can do, Dru. I'm sure he'd be hell on wheels, but we don't have much time."

He turned to Spike, "Gotta travel light," he put his hands on Spike's shoulders saying, "Sorry. Try to have fun without me." He walked back up the stairs, and Drusilla made haste to follow. Spike watched them go with an angry look on his face and exhaled.

"Oh, I will," he said once they'd left. He took his foot from its footrest and put it on the ground. He slowly got up and stood tall, recovered from his weakness. He kicked his wheelchair angrily, and it spun away. He looked back up at the garden entryway. "Sooner than you think."

**The next day:**

Buffy walked past the principals' office in time to see Dean and Sam exiting, they saw her and stopped.

"Go get in the car Sam, we're in a hurry," Dean told his brother, who waved at Buffy and did as he was told. Dean fell into step with her as they headed outside to the waiting Impala.

"You're leaving?" She asked as she turned to face him. Sam had stopped to say good bye to Xander, Cordelia, Oz and Willow.

"Yeah, Dad has a case in Nevada, and needs our help. We just withdrew and everything." He answered, slipping his hand into hers.

Buffy nodded, and clasped his hand. He lifted it and pressed a light kiss to the back of her hand, and didn't let go. They stopped at where Sam was talking to the others, and Dean nodded at Xander, who returned the manly greeting. They shook hands with Dean's other hand, as he was unwilling to release Buffy's just yet.

Sam exchanged email addresses with Willow, and headed to the car after Dean gave him a stern look and a light-hearted swat on the back of the head, which earned himself one from Buffy. He frowned at her and resisted the urge to stick his tongue out childishly. He said his farewells to Willow and Cordelia, who just sniffed and walked away. He told Oz to look him up sometime if he needed car help again, and gave the other guy his number.

He and Buffy walked toward the Impala and he leaned his back against his door, slipping his arms loosely around her waist and pressing his lips to her forehead as she leaned into his chest, kissing it lightly.

"Is this because of last night?" She asked, hoping it wasn't. That he hadn't just said what she wanted to hear about the two of them.

"No Buffy," he answered, and she looked down, biting her lip. "A lot has happened here that I don't like, that's true, but..." he lifted her chin with his other hand to meet his eyes. "I told you we'd be back and I meant it."

"You don't have to, I understand-," she fought tears and he silenced her with a kiss, then kissing the lone tear that fell onto her cheek.

"Shut up, this case should take a week, maybe two. Then we'll turn around." He assured her, kissing her forehead again. "Call me okay? I want to make sure you're alright." She nodded and he kissed her again, holding her close. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too."

"See you soon." He dragged himself away and climbed in, turning on the ignition and putting the car into Drive.

"Where are we going now?" Sam asked as he waved at Buffy again.

"Nevada, now turn around and buckle up, last thing I need is to get pulled over." He answered a little gruffly.

"Jerk," Sam muttered, but complied. Dean was looking out the rear view mirror at Buffy, and for once he didn't respond. He didn't even hear the song playing on the radio, because if he had he would have changed it; instead he just let it play.

_**'I guess I oughta tell you what's been going on**__  
__**well I've been chasing dreams for everyone but me.**__  
__**When your heart is filled with misery**__  
__**it's hard to find the energy**__  
__**to remember just how much she means to me.**___

_**Well I keep everything inside so long till it burns**__  
__**everybody stokes the fire and the walls get a little higher.**__  
__**I light the candle at both ends**__  
__**and I hit the gas, the wheels start to spin**__  
__**but she's always there to catch me when I fall.**___

_**'Cause I've been hell on wheels for days now**__  
__**there ain't a shade of red I can't paint**__  
__**when the lights go down, she always helps me see.**__  
__**In the darkness a day will come**__  
__**another light for you to lean upon**__  
__**but until then maybe your heart**__  
__**can rest in mine.**___

_**I just can't get the hang of hanging on**__  
__**every time I try to grab it, the will is gone.**__  
__**When she looks into my eyes**__  
__**she sees a man she used to recognize**__  
__**and not the stranger trying to go it all alone.**___

_**Maybe someday I'll see exactly what she sees in me.**__  
__**Maybe someday I'll be exactly who she wants me to be.**__  
__**Maybe someday I'll have the strength to run into the man that I once was**__  
__**but right now I think I'll walk into a crawl.'**_


End file.
